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Home recipes

Vegetarian Collard Greens

50 minutes
collard greens
Posted:5/7/19
Updated:5/27/21
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Easy Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe, these are the best! Healthy collard greens are simmered in a brown sugar vegetable broth making them full of flavor!  Only 68 calories a serving.
Easy Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe, these are the best! Healthy collard greens are simmered in a brown sugar vegetable broth making them full of flavor!  Only 68 calories a serving.

With lots of greens to pick in the garden we are having a side dish of collard greens weekly at the dinner table.  I love these collards so much I’ve been making a big batch to take to work to eat for lunch a few times a week. 

And I love that these collard greens are super fresh, straight from our garden….
Collard Greens Growing in Garden

To the table!
Easy Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe, these are the best! Collard greens are simmered in a brown sugar vegetable broth making them full of flavor!  Only 68 calories a serving!

How to Make Collard Greens Vegetarian

So many Collard Greens recipe call for chicken broth and bacon, but in this recipe I’m using vegetable broth to make it a vegetarian dish.  I’m adding a little bit of brown sugar into the vegetable broth to balance out the natural bitter flavor that collards give, but not making it too sweet.  

These Collard Greens are so good, you won’t even miss the meat element of the recipe!  The vegetable, brown sugar broth is the perfect liquid for these collards to simmer in.

Easy Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe, these are the best! Collard greens are simmered in a brown sugar vegetable broth making them full of flavor!  Only 68 calories a serving!

Vegetarian Collard Greens Ingredients

  • olive oil
  • butter
  • red pepper flakes
  • minced garlic
  • collard greens*
  • vegetable broth (did you know you can make your own from broccoli leaves or carrot tops?)
  • brown sugar
  • salt and pepper

* Tip: If you don’t have a full pound of collard greens, don’t worry.  If you have kale, add that in.  Sometimes I’ll do 1 pound of collards, sometimes I’ll do 12 oz collards/4 oz kale, sometimes I’ll do 8 oz collards/8 oz kale, it all really depends on what we’re growing in the garden.  

Easy Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe, these are the best! Collard greens are simmered in a brown sugar vegetable broth making them full of flavor!  Only 68 calories a serving!

How to Cook Vegetarian Collard Greens

You’ll want to start by heating olive oil and butter in a large pot over medium high heat.  Next add red pepper flakes and garlic to give them some flavor.  The collard greens are going to cook down a lot so don’t worry if the pot seems super full when you add them! 

Next, cover the pot with a lid and reduce the heat to a low simmer. Cook for 45 minutes, during this time the greens will become tender.
Easy Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe, these are the best! Healthy collard greens are simmered in a brown sugar vegetable broth making them full of flavor!  Only 68 calories a serving.

I hope you enjoy this Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe! Serve them as a side dish to just about anything, from fancy holiday dinners (always on our table for Thanksgiving!) to sloppy joe sandwiches.

Other Vegetarian Recipes You Might Like:

Dairy Free Mashed Potatoes
Vegetarian Mexican Lasagna 
Roasted Vegetable Sandwich 
Tomato Soup with Cauliflower
Zucchini Tots

Pin for later:

Easy Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe, these are the best! Collard greens are simmered in a brown sugar vegetable broth making them full of flavor!  Only 68 calories a serving!

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5 from 1 vote

Vegetarian Collard Greens

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Easy Vegetarian Collard Greens recipe, these are the best! Healthy collard greens are simmered in a brown sugar vegetable broth making them full of flavor!  Only 68 calories a serving.
Prep Time: 0 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
serves 8

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 1 pound collard greens stem removed, chopped
  • 3 cups vegetable broth
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • salt + pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Heat olive oil and butter in large pot over medium high heat.
  • Add red pepper flakes and garlic and cook for 1 minute.
  • Add collard greens to pot and cook 2 minutes, stirring occasionally with a spoon.
  • Add vegetable broth and brown sugar, mixing so the sugar is combined.
  • Bring to a boil.
  • Cover pot with lid and reduce heat to a low simmer for 45 minutes.
  • Season with salt + pepper when serving.

Notes

Tip: If you don't have enough collard greens, you can add kale as a substitution.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 68kcal (3%)
Course:Side Dish
Cuisine:American
Keyword:vegetarian collard greens
Did you make this?I love seeing what you’ve made! Tag me on Instagram at @BrooklynFarmGirl and don’t forget to leave a comment & rating below.

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  1. Bethany says

    May 22, 2019 at 2:11 pm

    I made these with BBQ wings and my family was begging for the recipe! THANK YOU!

    Reply
  2. Birt says

    September 18, 2018 at 2:24 am

    Veggie Beth’s vary ingredients. Which brand do you use?

    Reply
    • Birt says

      September 18, 2018 at 2:25 am

      Veggie broths

      Reply
    • Pamela says

      September 18, 2018 at 12:44 pm

      Hey Birt, I like Pacific and Knorr broths.

      Reply
  3. Janice Short says

    July 17, 2018 at 2:56 pm

    Hi Pamela, these collard greens are amazing, the best I ever had! I sauteed a Vidalia onion before adding the garlic, and even the onions taste sweeter than ever. Served this with well- buttered jasmine rice and had an easy to make and delicious lunch. Yum yum yum. Thanks for the great recipe! Janice
    PS I also have five cats. Your Fifi looks a lot like my Tinklepuffs, and I’ll bet she’s extra special!

    Reply
  4. Laura | Food Fun Family says

    July 25, 2016 at 1:24 pm

    Looks fantastic! Thanks for sharing with the Delicious Dishes Recipe party this week!

    Reply
  5. Lisa says

    July 21, 2016 at 8:09 am

    I love collard greens and this recipe sounds so delicious! I think my family would enjoy these! Pinning!

    Reply
  6. Megan - The Emotional Baker says

    July 14, 2016 at 9:56 am

    I love making collard greens, but have never added brown sugar. Can’t wait to give these a go (Wish I could grab some right out of my backyard 😉 )

    Reply
  7. Susan says

    July 13, 2016 at 6:40 pm

    I’ve never tried collard greens! I do love chard greens and wonder if it tastes similar? The recipe sounds wonderful with the brown sugar added.

    Reply
  8. Valentina | The Baking Fairy says

    July 13, 2016 at 1:38 pm

    This sounds amazing! Love that this is a vegetarian version. I feel like every recipe I find for collard greens always calls for a pound of bacon (or ham). Pinning!

    Reply
  9. Sophie says

    July 13, 2016 at 6:08 am

    I made your lovely recipe & loved it. I was a bit curious about the sugar in this recipe but it worked out well!

    Reply
  10. Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy says

    July 11, 2016 at 7:55 am

    This looks like a great way to use greens. I have been eating a lot of greens recently, but having them plain – I need to try this!

    Reply
  11. Monica says

    July 9, 2016 at 2:45 pm

    Vegetable stock and a little brown sugar sounds like a great way to cook collards. I’d be happy to eat the whole pot for you!

    Reply
  12. [email protected] Friendly Homemaking says

    July 7, 2016 at 7:59 pm

    Looks so delicious!

    Reply
  13. Suzanne says

    July 7, 2016 at 10:09 am

    I love collards but often times they are just prepared with too much sweet. Love your gently sweetened approach and that it’s vegetarian. I could have this every day easily.

    Reply
  14. [email protected]'s Recipes says

    July 7, 2016 at 10:04 am

    Delicious!! I wish I lived closer, so I could help you pick the veggies :-)))

    Reply
  15. Lori I E Koss says

    November 27, 2019 at 12:31 pm

    My son is a vegetarian, but grew up on his grandmother’s hamhock greens. I’m going to make this recipe for him. I know he will love them.

    Reply

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Hi! I'm Pamela, an artist Mom who shares family recipes. My farm is a 1,000 sq ft apartment in NYC. Let's make dinner together.

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