Instant Pot Collard Greens
Collard Greens made in an Instant Pot are a shortcut to Southern perfection. What normally takes hours on the stove is ready in less than an hour using a pressure cooker. Made with bacon, onions, ham, and garlic - these collard greens couldn't be more delicious.
Servings: 8 1 cup servings
Calories: 209kcal
Equipment
- measuring spoons
- measuring cups
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ pound bacon diced
- 1 large onion diced
- 3 - 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons black pepper
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- ¼ - ½ teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
- 2 pounds collard greens Fresh or Frozen. Frozen collard greens generally come in 16 oz bags so I use two.
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Optional
- ½ cup leftover ham or seasoning ham diced
- 1 ham hock
Instructions
- Press the Sauté button on your Instant Pot and let it get nice and hot. While the Instant Pot is heating up, dice up an onion, bacon, garlic, and ham (optional).
- Once the Instant Pot is hot, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil.1 tbsp olive oil
- When the olive oil is hot, add diced bacon.½ pound bacon
- Once the bacon is a little crispy on the edges (but not totally cooked) - add diced onions.1 large onion
- Continue to saute the onions and bacon until the onions are translucent. Then, add garlic and saute until the garlic is fragrant - about 2 minutes.3 - 4 garlic cloves
- If adding ham, add it once you can smell the garlic cooking - cook for a minute or two - it doesn't need to cook for long.½ cup leftover ham or seasoning ham
- After adding ham, add brown sugar and all of the dry spices (not apple cider vinegar).1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, 1 ½ teaspoons black pepper, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, ¼ - ½ teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes, ½ teaspoon Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
- Mix well to combine. Cook for another minute or two.
- Pour in all of the stock and let it come to a boil. This will allow all the flavors from the spices, garlic, ham, and bacon to infuse into the broth.1 ½ cups chicken broth
- Simmer this for 2 - 3 minutes.
- Add fresh or frozen collard greens to the stock mixture. Whether the greens are fresh or frozen, they just need to be well incorporated into the stock mixture.2 pounds collard greens
- Mix the apple cider vinegar into the greens and a ham hock if you are using it, then cancel the Sauté function.1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1 ham hock
- Put the lid on the Instant Pot and turn the knob to Sealing.
- Now, press the Manual or Pressure Cook button and adjust the time to 25 minutes using the - / + buttons (or the dial if your Instant Pot has one.) Be sure that it is set to HIGH pressure.
- When the cooking cycle is complete, leave the Instant Pot alone and let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. This means, do not touch anything - just leave it alone and let it do it's thing. The Instant Pot will start counting up from L 0:00. When it says, L 0:10, it is done.
- Finally, Quick Release (QR) any remaining pressure. When the Instant Pot reads L 0:10 (give or take a few minutes), carefully turn the knob to venting and let the remaining pressure out. (Stand back to avoid a painful steam facial. )
- When the pin drops, the lid is safe to open - again, stand back to avoid steam in the face.
- Finish your greens with a little pepper vinegar and salt and pepper.
Notes
How to Serve Collard Greens
We like to finish our greens with a little pepper vinegar and a touch of extra salt and pepper. The pepper vinegar mellows out any leftover bitterness in the greens. Collard greens are an amazing side dish for any kind of dinner, but we enjoy them as an acidic side dish to otherwise heavy or greasy meals, like fried catfish or fried chicken.Recipe Tips
- Add leftover ham, seasoning ham, or a ham hock to give a more meaty and smoky flavor to collard greens.
- Serve collard greens with a little pepper vinegar.
- We love to enjoy collard greens with "fried" chicken meatballs and Copycat Raising Cane's Sauce.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cup | Calories: 209kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 999mg | Potassium: 424mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 5810IU | Vitamin C: 50mg | Calcium: 278mg | Iron: 1mg