Greens and eggs

Posted on by Gina Smith
SPRING FEVER: Any combination of wild or garden-raised greens can be sautéed together for this recipe. Photo by Cathy Cleary

As with cultivated greens in the garden, only harvest wild greens before they have begun to flower. The plant’s chemistry and flavor change once it has begun to go to seed. If you are new to eating wild greens, be sure they are correctly identified before harvesting.

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or bacon grease
½ cup onion or wild spring onion (green part only), diced
½ teaspoon salt
8-10 cups chopped spinach, sochan leaves, lamb’s quarters, dandelion greens, chickweed, Swiss chard or turnip, mustard or sweet potato greens (try combining several varieties)
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
Three to four eggs
Fresh black pepper and salt for sprinkling
Red pepper flakes or hot sauce for serving (optional)

In a 9- or 10-inch skillet, heat the oil on medium-high heat. Sauté onion with salt two to three minutes. Add the greens and vinegar and sauté until starting to wilt, 30 seconds to five minutes, depending on your greens. Make three or four holes in the greens so that you can see the bottom of the pan. Crack eggs in the holes, sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Cover the skillet and turn the heat to low. Cook for three to five minutes until eggs are desired doneness. Using a spatula, scoop out sunny-side-up eggs onto plates and arrange greens around the eggs. Serve with hot sauce or pepper flakes on the side.

A version of this recipe appears in The Southern Harvest Cookbook by Cathy Cleary (Arcadia Publishing 2018).

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.