Cambodian-Style Collard Greens with Pork Belly

1. Boil pork and wash in cold water. Dice and keep aside with salt and diced onion.
2. In the same water, boil chopped collard greens. You can boil both together to save time
3. Dry roast garlic, green chilies and one Trinidad Scorpion or Ghost Pepper. Grind or pound to a paste.
4. In a wok, cook the pork without oil. Add the chili garlic paste. and use fish sauce to wash the remaining ingredients and add to the wok 9about 2 tbsp)
5. Stir in the collards greens (you may also use mustard greens or bok choy instead), and cook until the greens wilt.
6.  Serve hot.

Beet greens and Kashmiri Dum Aloo

I used to throw away beet greens until now.They are quite delicious when sauted with minced garlic and nigella seeds.

I also made Kashmiri Dum aloo à la Sanjeev Kapoor Except that I parboiled the potatoes instead of deep frying them.

The best Chinese dinner I had

Fried rice with Chinese sausage, Chinese broccoli sauteed in minced onions and red chilies, and whole fish baked with chili-bean sauce.The original recipes are by our friends- Gong and Deng.

The essential Asian greens

I love bok choy with roast duck, and bit of greens/fiber with any fatty food.

Here is a recipe for Choy sum with oyster sauce, though you can not go wrong with a basic sauté with minced garlic and nigella seeds (Kalonji) either. Just remember to wash them thoroughly before cooking. (I prepared methi-begun (eggplant) recently, with a dash of kasundi (Bengali mustard sauce) while serving)

My local Asian grocery provides a plethora of options, and I will add to this post as I discover new ways of eating my greens.

Wonton soup with gai lan (Chinese Broccoli)
How I did it for a midnight craving:

1. Boil chicken stock in a soup saucepan (or anything deep), add pre-made wontons/gyoza.
2. Wash the green thoroughly, chop or tear with hands. Add in the saucepan just over the stock when the wontons are almost done.
3. Add soy sauce and a little butter/sesame oil/chili oil on the leaves.  Toss well. The leaves will wilt further in the hot soup, so you can stop the heat.  Eat warm. Add pepper if you want. 
4. You can add sugar snap peas, sliced carrots, bok choy, and any leftover meat too. 

Day 1 (Gyoza and gai lan)

Day 2 (1+ Carrots, snow peas and bok choy)

Day 3 (1+ Maggi Masala/curry powder with noodles)

Leafy greens

When I was a kid, my mom always urged me to eat all my greens, insisting it was good for my eyes. I can't say I appreciated them much then. But the local Asian market in the vicinity of my current residence provides a lot of interesting options. In fact, a whole aisle is dedicated to bok choy and the likes. Spinach is a permanent member of my grocery selection. Here are some options you can try, if you want to include more leafy greens in your diet.

Pea greens sauteed with minced garlic, red chilies ( Kalonji optional ), and green peas. And soft cream cheese if you must . Or go Asian style with soy sauce and oyster sauce.

Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce

Ingredients:
Leafy greens like spinach or snow pea leaves
Minced garlic anout5-6 cloves
Kalonji, a pinch
Dry red chilies, 2-3 broken in halves
Green peas, less than you think- the leaves will wilt in heat and reduce in quantity.
Soft cheese of your choice, or Feta


Method:

1. Wash the leaves well under running water. I use a colander to strain the water.
2. Tear them with your hands. You may  use a knife to chop.
3. (Optional)Boil water and cook the greens till tender.
4. Heat oil in a wok/frying pan. Add kalonji, minced garlic. Take care not to brown the garlic, as it will turn bitter.
5. Add the leaves. The water from the levaes will prevent the garlic from drying up. No extra water in needed.
6. Add green peas. Stir well till done. Break and add dry green chilies
7. You may add cream cheese if you prefer. Feta goes well too.

You can make spinach purse or Indian samosa (similar to Greek Spanakopita or Turkish Borek) filing similarly. or on portobello caps as sides with a nice steak.