A collard green love affair!

Collard Greens Wraps!

Now I am sure you have seen this recipe on YouTube, Instagram and Pinterest among many others. All claiming to have tons of flavour and I am sure they do taste wonderfully. What I haven’t seen much of is collard green wraps for meat lovers. I’ve seen vegetarian and vegan options but no meat. Maybe I haven’t searched enough but on 4th July 2015 I decided to turn my BBQ dinner into something healthy, satisfying and flavourful….a meal where I could pack on tons of raw vegetables and no one would turn it down!

So first rule use what you have in your fridge. I hardly ever follow recipes to the letter. I use what I have or plan in advance of my grocery shopping. For this recipe I used:

1/2 medium Green Cabbage
2 medium Carrots
1 medium Cucumber
1/2 large Red Onion
1 large Tomato
1 medium Avocado

If your knife skills a not so good, use a mandolin or food processor! Put 1 cup of water in a saucepan and bring it to a simmer. Put your collard greens into a colander and run cold water over it for about 3-5mins ensuring that any dirt or foreign objects are completely washed away.

Now the next step can be approached in two ways. You can either cut the spine of the leaf completely out or shave it down a bit. Either way it make for better wrapping and eating. Just lay the leaf face down on a plate or cutting board and using a pairing knife delicately run the knife along the leaf’s spine or cut it out!

By this time the water should be simmering. Place a leaf in the simmering water for 15 secs. Using a pair of tongs remove the leaf from the pan and place it on your cutting board. Gently pat the leaf dry and begin adding your vegetables and meat!

I used pork! After taste testing my first wrap, I decided I needed a spicy, tangy sauce so I made a quick spicy mustard sauce and added some pickled ginger!!! Absolutely delicious!