Leafy Greens 5 Ways
Leafy greens are so important for our health. They are cooling and hydrating. They support and cleanse the blood and contribute fibre and precious minerals to our diet. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always mean that we love to eat them!
In the clinic, Jeremy and I are all too familiar with the look of dismay on our patients’ faces when we tell them about the importance of eating leafy greens daily. And we understand! Most of us didn’t enjoy eating our greens growing up and we’ve come to associate them with boredom, obligation or even something that we’re fed up of being forced into. So, I’d like to make greens exciting and tasty for you. I really hope you enjoy experimenting with these recipes.
I highly recommend checking out your local farmers market for a larger selection or just-picked sustainably grown veggies that actually have flavour, texture and life to them. It makes all the difference.
Rainbow chard from the garden
Blanching – why do it?
If you’ve ever felt heavy and bloated after eating green vegetables, then blanching is for you. Blanched greens are way more easily digested and absorbed than raw greens, and are even more digestible than veggies that have simply been cooked.
Blanching (briefly boiling) green veggies removes oxalic acid from some of our go-to leafy green veggies; spinach, rainbow chard and silverbeet. This is especially important if your gut health is compromised. A healthy gut microbiome neutralizes oxalic acid, but if the gut microbiome is unbalanced, oxalic acid can increase digestive discomfort and contribute to other health problems.
These recipes work beautifully and taste great without the blanching, so skip this step and wilt the greens in the pan with the other ingredients if you’d like.
How to blanch greens
Bring a large pot of generously salted water to the boil.
Throw in your chosen greens and cook until wilted. Soft greens like spinach will only take seconds while tougher leaves like kale need a few minutes to soften.
Pour into a colander to drain.
If desired, run cold water over the greens in the colander to cool them down quickly. This preserves their fresh colour and taste.
#1 Japanese Spinach with Sesame Seed
This extremely simple and tasty dish works well with silverbeet, chard, turnip leaves, mustard greens or kale.
Ingredients
1 large bunch of spinach, blanched and drained.
2 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp tamari
2 tsp roasted sesame oil
Toasted sesame seeds, to garnish
Method
Squeeze the excess water out of the blanched spinach with the back of a spoon (it will be very hot, so don’t burn yourself!
Chop the spinach roughly, the mix it with the mirin, tamari and sesame oil.
Serve garnished with sesame seeds.
Variation
As a room temperature dish: After draining, run cold water over the blanched greens to stop the cooking process. This preserves the fresh taste and bright green colour. Proceed with the recipe as above.
#2 Rainbow Chard with Fennel Seed, Lemon and Butter
Ingredients
1 bunch rainbow chard, leaves and stems separated
2-3 tbsp butter
1 tsp fennel seed, crushed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Stock or water
Lemon wedges
Method
Blanch and drain the chard leaves.
Chop the chard stems into small pieces.
Melt the butter over a medium heat. Add the fennel and fry over a medium-low heat until the fennel releases its scent. Add the chard stems and fry until they start to soften.
Now add the leafy part of the greens, season with salt and pepper and put on a lid. Continue to cook gently until everything is soft and tender. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and little stock or water if needed.
Serve with lemon wedges
Variations
Spinach variation: Keep the stems on, there’s no need to fry them separately. Just blanch them with the leaves
Kale variation: Remove and discard the stems – they’re usually too tough to eat.
Kalonji seed: Add 1 tsp of kalonji seeds with the fennel. This gives the dish an Indian feel and pairs well with curries or dahl.
#3 Spinach with Almonds, Raisins and Cumin
Ingredients
1 large bunch of spinach
2 tbsp raisins
¼ cup flaked almonds
2 tsp cumin
2 tbsp olive oil
1 leek, finely sliced
Salt
Method
Soak the raisins in boiling water.
Blanch the spinach and drain thoroughly.
In a large sauce pan, dry toast the flaked almonds till golden brown. Set aside for garnishing.
In the same pan, dry-toast the cumin seeds until they begin to change colour and their aroma fills the kitchen. Add the olive oil and leek, and fry over a medium-low heat until the leek caramelises.
Add the spinach, soaked raisins (drained first) and some salt. Turn the heat to low, cover with a lid and simmer for 3-5 minutes to allow the flavours to harmonise with the spinach.
Serve garnished with toasted almonds.
Variations
Garlic; Omit the leek and add one crushed clove of garlic. Fry the garlic until the pungent aroma rises (sometimes just a few seconds) and immediately add the spinach to prevent the garlic burning.
#4 French Style Braised Lettuce with Peas
Yes, cooked lettuce. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it! This is great served alongside porterhouse steak with café de paris butter and some celeriac mash.
Ingredients
1 cup of peas, fresh or frozen
1-2 tbsp butter
3 rashes of steaky bacon, cut crossways into short strips or a handful of lardons (optional)
1 small leek, finely chopped
1 large cos lettuce, roughly chopped
6 sage leaves
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Stock or water
Method
Boil the peas in salted water until tender. Drain and set aside.
Fry the bacon or lardons in the butter until they start to brown. Add the leek and fry over a low heat until softened.
Add the chopped lettuce and sage leaves, then season with salt and pepper. Add a little stock or water if needed. Cook with a lid on until the lettuce is soft. Stir in the peas.
Variation
Vegetarian with mint and parsley; omit the bacon and sage leaves and stir in 2 tbsp each of chopped mint and parsley just before serving.
#5 Horta; Greek-style Wild Weeds
Horta is really stunning made with weeds, but if you can’t find any, this is still good made simply with a couple of bunches of leafy greens and some parsley or mint. We are lucky to have nettles happily propagating themselves in our veggie patch and the dandelions tend to take over our lawn if we don’t get around to the mowing for a while. It’s a bit of silver lining situation!
Handling nettles takes some getting used to - they do sting. Only use young, tender nettles and wear gloves when handling them or you might end up with welts! The nettle’s ability to sting disappears when they are cooked.
Ingredients
1 large bunch of greens (spinach, silverbeet or chard)
An assortment of edible weeds and herbs; nettles, dandelions, sorrel, purslane
An assortment of herbs; dill, parsley, mint
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt
1 clove garlic or; 3 finely chopped spring onions or; 2 anchovies, smooshed with the back of a knife
Lemon juice
Method
Wash and roughly chop the greens and weeds. Keep the stems on if they’re not woody.
Blanch and drain the greens. If you’re using dandelions, blanch them with the greens as the blanching removes some of their bitterness.
Fry the garlic, spring onion or anchovies in the olive oil for a minute or two.
Add the drained greens, and some salt to taste. If using nettles, purslane or sorrel, add them at this point. Simmer over a low heat with a lid on until soft and sloppy (a few minutes for spinach, a little longer for other greens). Add a little water if needed.
Stir in the remaining herbs and a squeeze of lemon juice.
Serve with an extra drizzle of olive oil.