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Collards: Benefits, Concerns, & Uses of These Highly Nutritious Greens

You know what else, besides rock bands, thrives on a bit of environmental adversity? Collard greens. Unlike most garden plants, which need coddling when the thermometer drops below freezing, collards love the cold. While their brassica cousins broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and mustard will die when the temperature dips below freezing, collard greens can hang on in five degrees Fahrenheit. In fact, the greens actually get sweeter and better tasting, as the plant responds to the cold by converting starches to sugars and renaturing some proteins — all of which make the leaves yummier to us.

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Articles of Interest

Collard Greens: The Southern Comfort Food That’s Actually Healthy

This staple vegetable of the South has great cholesterol-lowing abilities.

Why Collard Greens Deserve a Place on Your Plate

Does anyone else remember the kale craze that started around 2010? Kale was everywhere, and for good reason! It’s full of many beneficial vitamins and minerals. But don’t overlook collards as a great alternative with just as much nutritional value. Collard greens’ large leaves (like kale) are packed with vitamins A and C. They also have more calcium, protein and iron per serving than kale. Did I mention they’re rich in antioxidants. So, I suppose what I’m saying is, eat your collards like Popeye eats spinach!

Are Collard Greens Good for You?

Collard greens may not be a staple in your kitchen, but the dark leafy green is closely related to several more popular vegetables, such as broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, and kale. They all belong to the cruciferous family, which contain substances that may help protect against cancer. They are also packed with many other health benefits and once prepared in the right way, they can be enjoyed in a variety of dishes.

Collard greens lovers are using science and history to lift up the Southern staple

Collard greens are part of the South's culinary traditions, especially in Black households. Now, a researcher is studying how differences in the leafy vegetable determine its taste and hardiness.

Collard Greens: Rethinking a Southern Classic

Collard greens are very high in vitamins A and C, manganese, folate, dietary fiber and calcium, and they’re a very good source of potassium, vitamin B2 and B6. Like other vegetables in the brassica family, their sulfur-containing phytonutrients are believed to have antioxidant properties.

Collards vs. Kale: Why Only One Supergreen Is a Superstar

In the midst of the kale craze, the reasons some nutritious greens get the cold shoulder may have to do with culture, race, and class. Ira Wallace knows people think collard greens aren’t sexy. “It’s your grandmother’s food—it’s not so exciting and classy," says Wallace, co-owner of the cooperative Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. That's why, when doing cooking demonstrations, she doesn't initially reveal that it's the ingredient of her wildly popular “Brazilian greens."

How an unexpected observation, a 10th-century recipe and an explorer’s encounter with a cabbage thief upend what we know about collard greens’ journey to the American South

Collard greens belong to the species Brassica oleracea, which also includes broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kohlrabi and Brussels sprouts. The huge genetic diversity within the species has complicated research into where collards were first domesticated and how they moved around the world.

Nutritional Profile and Chlorophyll Intake of Collard Green as a Convenience Food

This study highlights the nutritional value of the leaves of the collard green (Brassica oleracea var. viridis) cultivar “Couve-Manteiga” and their potential as convenience foods to increase the intake of essential nutrients, especially chlorophyll, in the daily diet.

Southern Collard Greens

These soul foods are a big deal around here, and it didn’t take me long to figure out why. They’re not only delicious, they also remind people of home, of history, of a culture and community nourished by recipes passed down through generations.

Resources

10 Greens That Are Healthier Than Kale

A staple vegetable of Southern U.S. cuisine, collard greens also boast incredible cholesterol-lowering benefits — especially when steamed. A recent study published in the journal Nutrition Research compared the effectiveness of the prescription drug Cholestyramine to steamed collards. Incredibly, the collards improved the body’s cholesterol-blocking process by 13 percent more than the drug! Of course, that won’t do you any good if you insist on serving them with ham hocks.

Collard Greens Cultural Festival

To celebrate the traditions, culture and historical contributions of African Americans while promoting family unity and the importance of healthy eating and living for the well-being of future generations.