There’s nothing quite like the flavor of Southern-style collard greens slow-cooked to perfection in the crock pot. This easy, hands-off recipe gives you tender greens with a smoky, savory kick that’s perfect anytime. Let the crock pot do the work, and get ready to savor the best of classic Southern cooking!
Table of Contents
- This is one of my FAVORITE recipes!
- 🗝️ Key takeaways: why this recipe is your new favorite
- 🧾 Gather your ingredients: what you'll need
- 📖 Make it your own: yummy variations
- 🔪 Step-by-step guide: instructions for success
- 🍴Must have tools: essential equipment
- 🥫 Leftover love: how to store and reheat collard greens
- Marye's Tip o' the day
- 💭 Insider tips: things to know
- 👩🍳 Let's answer those questions: FAQs
- 📚 More Southern comfort: related recipes you'll love
- 🍽️ Perfect pairings: what to serve with
- 🍽️ No waste: creative ways to repurpose leftover collard greens
- 📞 Wrapping it up: the last word
- 📖 Recipe
- Crock Pot Collard Greens
- 💬 Comments
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🗝️ Key takeaways: why this recipe is your new favorite
- Delicious, budget friendly, and full of nutrients, greens go with almost any main dish!
- Since they're done in the
slow cooker you can cook up a "mess" of greens any night of the week. No need to sweat over the stove all day. - Use pre-washed greens if you have them available, otherwise be sure to follow the instructions for cleaning below.
This classic southern side dish is even better when it's made in the crock pot!
If you grew up enjoying Southern-style collard greens with crisp, juicy bacon pieces, you're in luck.
I'm sharing the best way to clean and cook your fresh greens in this recipe. You'll get an end result that'll make Southern home cooks everywhere proud!
Or jealous... it kinda depends.
🧾 Gather your ingredients: what you'll need
This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the green recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.
📖 Make it your own: yummy variations
- Ham hocks are a popular addition to this dish. Cook them in the crockpot with the rest of the ingredients, chopping the meat and removing the bones before serving. This will make them extra smoky and flavorful.
- Smoked turkey is another flavoring possibility.
- Can't find fresh collards at the grocery store? Opt for turnip greens, mustard greens, or even some kale.
- If you're out of chicken broth, use vegetable broth instead. (Don't go for beef stock, though—it has too strong of a flavor.)
- You don't need to buy a whole new bottle of apple cider vinegar if you already have white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar in your pantry. Use what you have.
- Prefer spicy collard greens? Add more red pepper flakes to taste, or bump it up another notch by stirring in some jalapenos or hot sauce.
🔪 Step-by-step guide: instructions for success
This is an overview of the instructions. Full instructions are in the green recipe card at the bottom of the page. Click on the image to see it full size.
Tear clean collard greens and place in the
Mix the crushed red pepper, chicken stock, reserved bacon drippings, and vinegar.
Add the onions and garlic and pour the chicken stock mixture over the top.
Cook on low for 10 hours. Add bacon just before serving.
🤫 Marye's secret for zhuzhing it up -
Finish with a squeeze of lemon juice. It helps the body absorb the iron in the greens plus it really perks up the flavor!
zhuzh: verb. To make something more interesting or attractive
🍴Must have tools: essential equipment
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🥫 Leftover love: how to store and reheat collard greens
Feel free to double this easy collard greens recipe and enjoy 'em all week long! Leftovers keep just fine but you can also just stir them into this black-eyed pea soup for a different meal.
Either way - yum!
All you have to do is scoop any extra greens into an airtight container. Don't use a slotted spoon because you'll want to store all of the braising liquid (or "pot likker") too.
Kept in the fridge, leftover greens will last for up to five days. Heat them back up over the stove or in the microwave until warm.
I don't recommend freezing them. Though they'll be safe to eat for six months to a year, they lose texture and tend to get mushy after thawing.
Marye's Tip o' the day
Pot liquor is the liquid that cooks the collard greens, and it provides a ton of flavor. You can taste test it before starting the crock pot—season it well because it will season your greens!
💭 Insider tips: things to know
- Fresh greens from a farmer's market taste great but don't skip the cleaning steps. The leaves tend to hold onto a lot of sand and grit.
- If you don't have a plug for your sink, wash the greens in a large pot and colander, instead.
- Some people like to dry their green leaves on a paper towel, but you don't have to since we're tossing 'em right into liquid, anyway.
- If your collard leaves aren't tearing easily, you can use a sharp knife to carefully remove the tough stems—whatever is faster and easier for you.
- An easy way to remove tough stems from greens is to hold a leaf by the end of the stem with one hand and slide your other hand down the stem, tearing away the leaf.
- Don't worry if your pot of greens looks too full at first—they'll simmer way down, eventually. You'll need more fresh greens than you think.
👩🍳 Let's answer those questions: FAQs
Have other questions? Ask me in the comments!
It's all about the flavoring and simmering. This Southern collard greens recipe uses a tried-and-true blend of flavorful ingredients (like salted meat!) as well as a low-and-slow cook time. The result? Ultra-tender greens with a perfect, mild flavor.
No, it's not true Southern cooking without it! Okay, you actually can cook without bacon, but you will lose flavor. Replace the bacon grease with butter or olive oil and be sure to swap out the chicken broth, too.
⏲️ Marye's time saving hacks -
Buy pre-diced onion and a bag of washed-and-cut greens from the produce section to reduce prep time.
📚 More Southern comfort: related recipes you'll love
- With fatty bacon and sauteed onions, Southern Fried Cabbage is a super easy recipe that's always crisp, flavorful, and satisfying!
- Steakhouse Creamed Spinach is a delicious way to get the family to eat more greens—plus, it only takes twenty minutes to make!
- Looking for more of my favorite Southern recipes? KFC Copycat Coleslaw is easy to make and tastes perfect with any main dish!
- These slow-cooked, "smothered" Southern Green Beans are made with smoky bacon—plus, the recipe gives the option to add potatoes, too!
🍽️ Perfect pairings: what to serve with
Now, if this doesn't get your mouth to waterin' I don't know what will.
Fried pork chops and gravy? Yes please! Perfect with a side of mashed potatoes and these collard greens!
Creamed corn cornbread is extra moist and delicious!
Sweet tea bundt cake is moist and delicious with a lemon sweet tea flavor and a lemony glaze. Or, try this vintage buttermilk pie recipe!
🍽️ No waste: creative ways to repurpose leftover collard greens
Have leftovers?
I like to add them into soups and stews. They're especially goood in this black eyed pea soup!
Pot liquor, the liquid left from cooking the greens, is full of flavor and nutrients. Don't throw it out - use it as you would any stock. Cook veggies, add to sauces, etc.
📞 Wrapping it up: the last word
I love greens all year but I crave them in the spring. My parents always had a garden and in the early spring they'd thin out the rows of vegetables and we'd have collard greens, beet greens, turnip greens... you name it!
And you know, you can never get a recipe to taste the same way as mom's! These are delicious and are very close to what I grew up on.
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need.
If you love this recipe please comment below and give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 Recipe
Southern Collard Greens with Bacon
Print Pin Recipe Save Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 2 pounds collard greens, cleaned, remove center stems, cut leaves into chunks
- 6 ounces onion, about 1 cup chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon crushed red peppers, more to taste
- 2 tablespoons bacon drippings
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 pound bacon, cooked and reserve the drippings
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
To Clean:
- It's easiest if you can find pre-washed greens but if you can't then follow the instructions below to clean all the grit out of them.
- Fill the sink or a dishpan with barely warm water. I prefer to use a dishpan.
- Push the collard greens under the water and move them around.
- Wash the greens, scrubbing between your hands.
- Let the water out of the sink or pour it out of the dishpan.
- Rinse under running water.
- Repeat this process until there is no sign of sand or grit in the sink.
To cook:
- Fry the bacon until it is crisp. Remove from the pan, reserving 2 tablespoons of drippings, and crumble it.
- Put in a ziploc bag or storage container, seal or cover, and refrigerate.
- Spray the slow cooker with no-stick cooking spray.
- Remove the leaves from the thick center stalks of the collards.
- Cut or tear into large pieces. 2 to 3 inches is about right.
- Add to the slow cooker.
- Add the chopped onion and minced garlic.
- Pour the chicken stock into a large mixing bowl and add the crushed red pepper, reserved bacon drippings, and vinegar.
- Whisk to mix and pour the mixture over the greens in the slow cooker.
- Cook on low for 10 hours or until greens are tender.
- Add salt and black pepper to taste.
- Give the bacon a few seconds in the microwave just to warm it up.
- Serve collard greens with crumbled bacon on top.
Notes
-
- Pot liquor is the liquid that cooks the collard greens, and it provides a ton of flavor. You can taste test it before starting the crock pot—season it well because it will season your greens!
- Fresh greens from a farmer's market taste great but don't skip the cleaning steps. The leaves tend to hold onto a lot of sand and grit.
- Buy pre-diced onion and a bag of washed-and-cut greens from the produce section to reduce prep time.
- An easy way to remove stems from greens is to hold a leaf by the end of the stem with one hand and slide your other hand down the stem, tearing away the leaf as you go.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
First published April 2, 2023. Last updated October 14, 2024 for readability, editorial improvements and more tips.
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Crock Pot Collard Greens
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Tonya says
This is one of my FAVORITE recipes! When I was a small child, I lived with my grandparents.. we grew all off the greens! I remember my grandmother would put them in a pillow case and run them through THREE rinse cycles on the washing machine to get rid of all the grit! I just purchase the pre washed, pre chopped bags now❤️ allows me to get it cooking that much faster! Do not forget the cornbread and the pepper sauce! One of my most favorite childhood dishes ❤️❤️❤️