Feijoada and Quick Collard Greens

I am half Brasilian and Feijoada is something I grew up with and is instant comfort for me. The real deal stuff uses all parts of the piggy and takes hours to make, this mama ain't got time for that, so I developed a quick recipe with all the flavor. Black beans are a cornerstone in Latin cooking and I love to make my own but sometimes, I don't have the time or energy, so canned beans are a great option.

This is a fantastic recipe for reintroduction of legumes after Whole30, all the other ingredients are compliant. I am always looking at recipes and wondering, what the heck do I serve this with?! I always serve it with rice, white or cauliflower, and quick collard greens. So here, I show you how to make the whole meal, something your whole family will like, my 3 year old gobbled up every last bite of this dinner!

Feijoada

• 4 slices compliant bacon, chopped
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 large Kielbasa, quartered
• 3 cans black beans, drained and rinsed or 5 cups cooked beans
• 1 can 7oz diced green chiles
• 1 cup compliant red enchilada sauce
• 1/2 Tablespoon garlic powder
• 1/2 Tablespoon cumin
• 1 Tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice 
• 1 teaspoon salt

- Heat a large skillet to medium-high heat and add the bacon, once the bacon is almost crispy, add the chopped onions, cook until they are translucent. Add the Kielbasa and brown, lower the heat to medium-low.

- Add the beans, chiles, enchilada sauce, and spices. Stir to combine and cover. Let the mix cook, stirring occasionally for about 30 minutes. Check seasonings to your tastebuds - if you like it spicy, add some hot sauce, my favorite is Cholula!

- Serve over rice (cauli or white) and pile some Quick Collard Greens (see below) on top!

Here is the main cast of characters: chopped bacon, onions (I prefer white onions), kielbasa sausage, and black beans. If you want to make your own beans, check this Kitchn post on How to Cook Beans in the Slow Cooker , seriously the only way I do it and I make a huge batch and portion out 2 cups in freezer bags and freeze for anytime I want beans. 

Compliant Enchilada sauce is pretty difficult but I was able to find this brand, El Pato, with super clean ingredients. I know I really need to make my own but sometimes this mama needs a shortcut.

Here is that beautiful bacon, almost crispy, with the onions added.

Here is  the onions cooked to perfection and I added that Kielbasa to get some brown flav-a.

Here is the whole shebang in the pan, now just stir and let it hang out. The beans will soften and the flavors will combine and become beautiful. Plus, the scent will bring all the family to the kitchen! Then you serve it with rice of your choice or even a sweet potato would be amazing. Make sure to serve it with the quick collards, they seriouly take a few minutes and add so much flavor. My youngest kept stealing more from everyone's plate when we weren't looking!

Quick Collard Greens

• 1 large bunch collards, prepped: washed, center rib removed, and chiffonade cut (pics below for reference)
• 1 Tablespoon Italian Sausage Seasoning Mix -
• 1 Tablespoon coconut or avocado oil

- Heat oil in a skillet on high heat. Once hot, not smoking, add the collard greens and seasoning.

- Stir constantly and it will wilt quickly, it should only take about 2 minutes total, serve immediately.

Collard Greens are such a beautiful vegetable, I love how it is prepared in the quick method, I actually cannot stand the Southern stewed ones. Blech! To prep your greens, wash each leaf and dry. Lay one flat on a cutting board, you are going to want to cut that thick, white, rib in the center while preserving as much of the leaf as possible. I do a narrow V shape, leaving the top of the green. I continue to do that to each leaf and I stack them as I go along.

Now I cut the green in half, just separating the top portion. Now for the chiffonade, a fancy name for a simple cut. Gather one stack and tightly roll into a cigar shape. Then, slice very thinly and you will have narrow shreds of the collards.

Now for the fast cook! Heat your oil, throw in the greens, seasoning, and stir quickly! They are done when they turn dark green and shrink a bit. Easy, fast, healthy, and most importantly, tasty!