Collard Green Spring Rolls Recipe

These crispy, spicy Chinatown-style spring rolls are made with traditional Southern greens.

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Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

For the greens:

• 4 strips black pepper bacon
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, smashed
• 2 chipotle peppers in adobo, drained but not rinsed
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 6 cups chicken stock or ham hock broth
• 1 pound collard greens, stems removed and leaves cut into 2-inch pieces

For the spring rolls:

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon water
• 12 spring roll wrappers
• 4 cups canola oil, for frying
• Hot Sauce Mayo Dip (recipe below), for serving

For the hot sauce mayo dip:

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• ¼ cup reserved collard green pot likker
• 1 tablespoon pepper pot hot sauce
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 serrano pepper, thinly sliced

Directions

To make the collard greens: Cook the bacon in a large stockpot over medium heat until the bacon is about halfway toward crispy and done, 7 to 10 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, peppers, vinegar, sugar, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper, and cook for 2 minutes, until the onion and garlic begin to soften. Stir in the stock and bring the liquid to a simmer. Stir in the greens, cover the pot, then let the greens cook for 1½ hours, or until tender. Allow the greens to cool completely before making the spring rolls. If desired, you can make them ahead (see note), cool completely, then refrigerate the greens and pot likker in an airtight container for up to 5 days until ready to use.

To make the spring rolls: Mix the cornstarch and water in a small bowl and set it near your preparation area for easy access. Remove the greens from the pot, then finely chop them and set aside. Reserve 1/4 cup of the pot likker for making the Hot Sauce Mayo Dip. Place a spring roll wrapper on a clean surface with the point of a corner at the top. Scoop a tablespoon of chopped greens about 1 inch from the bottom point of the wrapper, then spread the greens over the wrapper, leaving 1/4-inch around the edges. Working from the bottom, tightly roll up the wrapper about halfway toward the point at the top. Fold in the left and right ends, then keep rolling toward the top. Brush the top point with the cornstarch mixture, then finish rolling all the way, making sure the tip is affixed to the roll. Repeat until you have a dozen spring rolls. At this point you can refrigerate them until you are ready to fry them. This is also a good point to make the Hot Sauce Mayo Dip (recipe follows).