Jerk Seasoned Collard Greens Recipe - Budget Bytes (2024)

When lockdown started a few months ago I focused on buying vegetables that would last a long time in my fridge or pantry so I could continue to eat a well rounded plate without having to go to the grocery store often. Collard greens are one of the first things I bought. They hold up well in the fridge, they’re inexpensive, and I just loooooove them! When I made that first pot of collard greens I looked in my pantry for something to season them with and pulled out a bottle of jerk seasoning on a whim. I couldn’t believe how incredible the flavors were together, and I knew that these Jerk Seasoned Collard Greens were something I was going to need to share on the blog.

Interesting in knowing what other fruits and vegetables last a long time? Check out my round up of Long Lasting Produce to Stock Up on During Isolation (including recipes ideas for each)!

What is Jerk Seasoning?

If you’ve never heard of Jerk seasoning, it’s an amazing spicy, sweet, and savory blend of herbs and spices used for jerk style cooking in Jamaica. Jerk marinades usually consist of a mix fresh ingredients like Scotch Bonnet peppers, onions, ginger, scallions, allspice, garlic, thyme, among other ingredients. The flavorful marinade is slathered all over chicken, beef, pork, fish, or vegetables, then they’re cooked over an open flame to perfection. For this recipe, I simmered my collard greens in a broth seasoned with a dry jerk seasoning and a touch of orange juice for sweetness. This seasoning is pretty much good on everything.

Where to Find Jerk Seasoning

You should be able to find either the wet marinade (in a jar) or a bottle of dry spices in most major grocery stores, although a dry spice mix is what I used for this recipe. Walkerswood is an authentic brand from Jamaica that makes both the wet marinade and dry spice mix and it’s available for purchase on their website, on Amazon, and in many large grocery chains like Kroger. Or, if you want to try to make your own spice mix, check out this jerk seasoning recipe from Immaculate Bites.

What to Serve with Jerk Seasoned Collard Greens?

The unique sweet-savory-spicy flavor of these collard greens makes them a match for a variety of dishes. For some reason, I really love them with mac and cheese and ate them throughout the first few weeks of lock down just piled on top of a bowl of mac. In the photo above, I have them paired with Quick BBQ Chicken and Mac and Cheese. They’d also go great with other southern comfort foods, like potato salad, cornbread, BBQ Meatballs with Cheese Grits, or even something like red beans and rice.

How to Store Leftover Collard Greens

These simmered collard greens are one of those things that tastes even better the next day. Make sure to store your collard greenswith the leftover broth from the pot, so they can continue to marinate in all that flavor in the refrigerator. You can reheat the leftovers (with the broth) either in a sauce pot on the stove over medium, stirring often, or microwaved until hot. Just strain the greens out of the broth for serving (use a slotted spoon to lift them out of the broth).

Scroll down for the step by step photos!

How to Make Jerk Seasoned Collard Greens – Step by Step Photos

Slice one yellow onion and mince one clove of garlic (if you prefer not to have large pieces of onion, you can finely mince the onion instead). Add the onion and garlic to a large pot with 1 Tbsp cooking oil and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent (about 5 minutes).

Add 2 tsp jerk seasoning, ½ cup orange juice, and 3 cups chicken broth to the pot with the onions and garlic.

Add one pound chopped collard greens to the pot. I used collard greens that come in a bag, pre-washed and chopped. If you’re chopping your own, make sure to wash them well, cut the stems out, then chop into strips.

Stir everything to combine, place a lid on the pot, turn the heat up to medium-high, and allow the broth to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low and let the collard greens simmer until tender, stirring occasionally. I let my collard greens simmer for 30 minutes, but you can simmer for more or less time depending on how tender you like your greens.

Serve the jerk-seasoned collard greens hot, with a slotted spoon to let the broth drain away.