Southwest Collard Greens ☺

4 servings. These are Southwest Collard Greens inasmuch as fish sauce is native to Albuquerque. Total preparation time is at least 45 minutes.

2 t olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, sliced then coarsely chopped
1 chorizo sausage (3 - 4 oz), casing removed
1 lb bunch collard greens (see note)
1 T fish sauce (or substitute salt to taste)
1 T taco seasoning (homemade, or 1/2 package)
2 T apple cider vinegar

Note: To prepare the greens for cooking, cut the central rib (and stem) from each leaf. Discard the rib. Rinse the leaves, then spin dry in a salad spinner, or pat dry between layers of paper towels. To chop the greens, stack several rinsed and dried leaves on top of each other, roll them up into a tight roll, then slice the roll into thin slices. Continue to roll and chop the leaves until you have chopped the whole bunch.

Heat the olive oil in a tall saucepan (with cover) over medium high heat. Add the onion, and stir to coat with oil. Fry for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Add the garlic, and fry for another minute or so. Add the chorizo, and break up into small pieces. Fry until the sausage is no longer pink.

Add the chopped collard greens, and stir to mix well with the onion mixture. Cover the saucepan, and reduce the heat to medium low. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the collards are wilted, but still bright green. Stir in the fish sauce, taco seasoning, and vinegar. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and continue cooking for at least 10 minutes until the greens are tender and no longer bright green. You can leave this on a very low heat for a couple of hours.

This is a great side dish that stands up to just about anything. It's great with barbecue, and with beans. You can also double the recipe and fix it in a crock pot for a great picnic dish. (Fry the onions, garlic, and meat, add to the crockpot, add the other ingredients. Cover, set it to cook, and ignore for several hours.)