Turnip Greens
Updated April 18, 2024
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
- Total Time
- About 1½ hours
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 1 hour and 20 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
3 bunches turnip greens (about 1 ½ pounds), see Tip
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock, plus more if necessary
¼ teaspoon ground cayenne, plus more to taste
Salt and black pepper
½ teaspoon smoked paprika, plus more to taste
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
18 grams carbs; 5 milligrams cholesterol; 170 calories; 6 grams monosaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 9 grams fat; 3 grams fiber; 744 milligrams sodium; 6 grams protein; 9 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Tear the turnip green leaves from their stems; discard the stems (if you like, tender, thin stems can be sliced and cooked along with the leaves). Stack several leaves on top of one another, roll them up, and then slice them. Put the pieces in a large bowl or sink filled with water. Swish them around; any debris will sink to the bottom. Remove the greens, drain the water and repeat if needed.
- Step 2
Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or large, heavy skillet over medium-high. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Step 3
Add the balsamic vinegar and deglaze the pan by scraping up any browned bits. Add the stock, greens, cayenne, 1½ teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon pepper to the pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook uncovered for 30 minutes, then stir in the smoked paprika. Continue cooking until the greens are tender and no longer taste bitter, about 30 minutes longer (you may need to add a splash of stock or water if the liquid evaporates before the greens are cooked to your liking).
- Step 4
Taste to adjust the seasoning, adding more salt, cayenne or smoked paprika, if desired.
To save time, look for prewashed and trimmed turnip greens in bags.
Private Notes
Comments
I grow the multicolored Swiss chard, beet greens with no beets, in fall and winter. Here in Seattle it does really well and only dies if we have a rare hard freeze. I cooked this with the Swiss chard and it looked so pretty with the bright colored stems. Tasted great too.
Greens are so good for us and so delicious when well cooked. If you haven't liked them until now, that may be because they're usually not well cooked. I'm going out to buy 3 bunches of turnip greens tomorrow and can't wait to make them in this amazing-looking sauce. Wow. Thanks, Vallery Lomas!
Turnip and bok choy are both cultivars of the species Brassica rapa. Of course, Donald Trump and, say, Taylor Swift are members of the same species, so that doesn't mean they will be identical.
Vegetable better than bouillon was also too salty for me, so go lighter on the broth if you're using it. I accidentally doubled the garlic, which was good, and threw in some cubed tofu to balance the saltiness. I served it with black chickpeas which seems like it would be too hippie health food, but the bold flavors of the greens really made it work.
Aside from doing one thing as I was taught (I put the smoked paprika into the hot oil after the onions had softened), I made as written. Very nice variation for cooking up turnip greens; hadn’t considered smoked paprika. FYI, there are turnip varieties that one can plant to grow just the greens, such as Seven Top (Southern Prize), which I grow and harvested a goodly amount yesterday. Worth growing if you love turnip greens. I can always find turnip roots at my Farmer’s Mkt, so win-win IMO.
Happy to find a recipe to make use of garden turnip greens (with the few small turnips & thin the raised bed in hope for more). Love the balsamic and smoked paprika elements!