How To Cook Beet Greens Food

SIMPLE AND DELICIOUS BEET GREENS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the beet greens, and cook uncovered until tender, about 2 minutes. Drain in a colander, then immediately immerse in ice water for several minutes until cold to stop the cooking process. Once the greens are cold, drain well, and coarsely chop.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the greens until oil and garlic is evenly distributed. Season with salt and pepper. Cook just until greens are hot; serve with lemon wedges.

HOW TO COOK BEET GREENS

Steps:

• Trim the beet greens from the beets. Leave a good inch of stem attached to the beets because that's best for roasting beets (it stops the beets from bleeding red as much if you don't actually cut into their flesh). Set beets aside for another use.
• Cut the stems and leave into 2 inch pieces. Put the pieces into a colander and rinse them really well. Often there is a lot of sandy, grainy dirt on the stems and leaves and you want to get rid of that.
• Put about an inch of water into a medium sauce pan and bring it to a boil.
• Add about 1/2 teaspoon of salt and stir it in.
• Add your stems and leaves to the sauce pan.
• Bring back to a boil over high heat and then stir and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 3-5 minutes until a stem is very soft when pierced with a fork.
• Drain the beet greens. Be sure to use a clean colander. You don't want the dirt from before to end up on your cooked greens.
• Return the beet greens and stems to the sauce pan or a serving dish and add about 1/2 tablespoon of butter. Stir and taste. Add salt if desired.

HOW TO COOK BEET GREENS

Steps:

• Trim off the stems (optional). The stems are edible, but not everyone likes their bitter taste. If you're not willing to try them, cut off the stems just below the leaves. You can remove the thick stem base from the largest leaves as well, cutting them out in a V pattern. Like all greens, these will sauté down to a much smaller volume. You can cook a large mound at once, as long as it fits in your skillet. Put the lid on and simmer the greens to wilt them down.
• Roll up the leaves and chop them. Bunch the leaves together and roll them into a cylinder. Chop them into bite-size pieces, at roughly ½-1 inch (1.25-2.5 cm) intervals. If using the stems, chop them into chunks of similar size.
• Wash the greens. You can use a salad spinner, or submerge the greens in a bowl of water and rub off any noticeable dirt. Leave it for a couple seconds to let grit sink to the bottom. Lift out the leaves and repeat if necessary until the water comes out clear. Move the leaves to a separate bowl, leaving them damp. If using the stems, wash them in a separate bowl.
• Blanch the greens (optional). This will preserve the bright, green color, but the beet greens will cook fine without it. Here's how to go about it: Prepare an ice bath: a bowl of cold water and ice. Submerge the greens in boiling water for one minute. Remove the hot greens with tongs or drain them into a strainer or colander. Place them in the ice bath until cold. Drain into a strainer.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add enough extra-virgin olive oil to coat the base of your skillet or frying pan, about 1-2 tablespoons (15-30 mL). Heat over medium heat until the oil shimmers, or a drop of water sizzles when flicked onto the oil.
• Cook stems for 4 minutes (optional). If using the chopped beet stems, add them to the pan first. Sauté for 4 minutes, or until slightly softened.
• Add and cook garlic for 1 minute. Dice two cloves of garlic; add them to the pan. Cook for about one minute, or until the garlic turns translucent. Optionally, add a diced shallot and/or ¼ tsp (1 mL) red pepper flakes.
• Cook the leaves and cover until wilted. Add the chopped leaves to the pan without stirring. Cover and let wilt to a much smaller mound, about 1-3 minutes. The water from the rinsing should be enough to steam the leaves slightly. If the leaves don't start shrinking within 30-60 seconds, or if the garlic starts turning brown, add a couple more spoonfuls of water.
• Serve or cook with acidic flavors. Vinegar or lemon juice cuts the bitter flavor of the beet greens. Provide lemon wedges to squeeze over the greens, or remove from heat and splash them with your favorite type of vinegar. For a more intense acidic flavor, add 1-2 tablespoons (15-30 mL) vinegar to the pan along with the juice of one orange. Simmer for an additional 2-3 minutes or until liquid has boiled away. Serve topped with orange zest. Beet greens are high in sodium already, but you may add a pinch of salt and pepper if you think the dish needs more flavor.

SAUTEED BEET GREENS

Steps:

• Heat a medium saute pan coated with oil over medium heat until the oil shimmers. Add the beet greens and garlic, and toss until the greens are wilted and tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and lemon zest and juice, and toss. Season with salt and pepper.

EASY BEET GREENS

Steps:

• Wash beet greens and drain. Chop stems and leaves separately.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over low heat and cook garlic until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add stems and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add greens and allow to wilt, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with lemon juice and serve.

ROASTED BABY BEETS AND SAUTEED BEET GREENS

Steps:

• Take 3 bunches of baby beets, washed well with tops. Cut off the tops, and place the beets in a roasting pan, toss with olive oil and add rosemary sprigs. Roast at 375 for about 30 minutes. Remove skin while warm, and cut in half. Meanwhile saute the beet greens in olive oil and add a splash of balsamic vinegar. Season with salt and pepper and place on plate, top with baby beets.

ROASTED BEETS AND SAUTEED BEET GREENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees (175 degrees C). Wash beets thoroughly leaving the skins on and remove the greens.
• Rinse greens, removing any large stems and set aside. Place the beets in a small baking dish or roasting pan, and toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. (If you want to peel the beets, it is easier to do so once they have been roasted).
• Cover and bake for 45 to 60 mins, or until a knife can slide easily through the largest beet.
• When the roasted beets are almost done, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat.
• Add the garlic and onions, and cook for a few minutes.
• Tear the beet greens into 2 to 3 inch pieces, and add them to the skillet.
• Cook and stir until greens are wilted and tender.
• Season with salt and pepper. Serve the greens as is, and the roasted beets sliced with either red-wine vinegar, or a knob of butter.

LEMON & BUTTER BRAISED BEET GREENS

Steps:

• Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet or Dutch oven over low heat, and add the garlic.
• Cook gently, stirring frequently, until the garlic is fragrant but does not take on any color.
• Add the moist greens, raise the heat to medium-high, and cover the pan. Cook until the greens wilt, about 2 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice.
• Remove the cover; if there's any excess liquid, cook until it evaporates.
• Toss the greens with the lemon juice, salt, and pepper, and serve hot.