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Collard Greens and Rice Soup

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JJ Johnson, cookbook author and award-winning chef at Fieldtrip in New York City, is a member of the Williams Sonoma 2023 Chefs’ Collective, a group of culinary experts from across the country who inspire us. He created this soup so he could incorporate some of the most basic ingredients he loves in one pot. And it’s the soup he would share at a Friendsgiving gathering on Thanksgiving Day. Potlikker is the term for the juice left from cooking seasoned collard greens, and that’s what he uses here to build the broth. Revered in Southern cooking, potlikker is super-flavorful and packed with vitamins and minerals. It was originally eaten for its nutritional value by enslaved people on Southern plantations, and to this day some people drink it straight.

The paprika adds a hint of smokiness, and finishing it with sherry vinegar gives the soup a bit of tang. You can find bunches of collard greens at the grocery store or farmers’ market, or buy it pre-cut in a bag to make this simple recipe even quicker. After you add the collards and rice, the soup becomes thicker and less brothy. Any leftovers freeze well for future meals.

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup (2 fl. oz./60 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium white onion, finely chopped
  • 2 large carrots, finely chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, finely chopped
  • 2 Tbs. tomato paste
  • 1 Tbs. garlic, minced
  • 2 Tbs. smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp. ground coriander
  • 1 tsp. ground cumin
  • 5 cups (10 3/4 oz./325 g) trimmed and sliced collard greens or one 12-oz. (375-g) bag precut collard greens
  • 6 cups (1.5 l) chicken stock
  • 2 tsp. kosher salt (preferably Diamond Crystal), plus more to taste
  • 3 cups (15 oz./470 g) cooked long-grain white rice
  • 1/4 cup (1/3 oz./10 g) chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • 1 Tbs. sherry vinegar
  • Chili oil for serving
  • Sour cream for serving

Directions

In a large pot over medium heat, pour in the olive oil. Add the onion, carrots and celery and sauté until golden, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and garlic and cook until the tomato paste has darkened slightly, about 2 minutes.

Add the paprika, coriander and cumin and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the collard greens, stock and salt and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the collard greens are tender to the bite, about 30 minutes.

Add the rice, parsley and vinegar, stir well and season with salt to taste. Simmer until the rice is heated through, 2 to 3 minutes.

Serve the soup in individual bowls, topped with chili oil and sour cream. Serves 4.

Excerpted from The Simple Art of Rice by JJ Johnson. Copyright © 2023 by JJ Johnson Reprinted with permission from Flatiron Books. All rights reserved.

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