“G” is for Greens. Perhaps nowhere in the United States have greens been so beloved as in the South. And South Carolina has a long tradition of cooking greens—especially collards, turnip greens, and some wild leaf greens. The traditional southern method of cooking collards and turnips is to make a broth with fatback, streak o’lean, ham hocks, or other salted pork or bacon and water. The greens are stripped of tough or yellowed stems and leaves and added to the boiling water.The heat is reduced and the greens left to simmer for up to two hours. Vinegar with chipped onions, tomato preserves, or hot pepper sauce is frequently kept on the table for seasoning. The pot liquor may be used as a broth or served with the greens as a side dish. Greens are highly nutritious; a source of riboflavin, calcium, and iron, as well as vitamins A and C. When served on New Year’s Day, greens are considered a promise of “greenbacks” in the new year.
Dr. Walter Edgar has two programs on South Carolina Public Radio: Walter Edgar's Journal, and South Carolina from A to Z. Dr. Edgar received his B.A. degree from Davidson College in 1965 and his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina in 1969. After two years in the army (including a tour of duty in Vietnam), he returned to USC as a post-doctoral fellow of the National Archives, assigned to the Papers of Henry Laurens.