Shared by Rachel Barnett
Shared by Rachel Barnett
Ethel Glover’s Collards
Yield: 6 servingsTime: 30 minutes
Ethel Glover’s Collards
Yield: 6 servingsTime: 30 minutesFamily Journey
Byelorussia (present-day Belarus) and BaltimoreSummerton, SC
Columbia, SC
Ethel May Glover who worked for Rachel Barnett’s family from the 1930s to the 1990s introduced the Eastern European Jewish family to Southern staples like collards and fried chicken. Meanwhile, Rachel’s grandmother Sarah taught Ethel about kosher laws and Ethel adjusted her recipes, leaving out dairy from her fried chicken and bacon from her collards.
Rachel added tomato to Ethel’s recipe, which is a staple on New Years Day in the South served with the iconic black eyed pea dish hoppin’ John. “Making sure you add a touch of sugar to take the bitterness out is so important,” Rachel shares — it’s a lesson she learned from Ethel.
Read more of Rachel Barnett’s family story in “” and get her recipes for and Peach Cobbler.
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 1 large bunch fresh collards, rinsed, dried and chopped
- 2 small Roma or plum tomatoes, chopped
- 8 oz. chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- Salt and pepper, taste
Preparation
Step 1
Add the olive oil to a large pot and heat over medium heat. Add the diced onions and cook until translucent and soft, 3-4 minutes.
Step 2
Add the collards, tomatoes, and broth to cover. Add the oregano, sugar and salt and pepper to taste to the pot and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed before serving.
Recipe reprinted with permission from “Kugels & Collards: Stories of Food, Family, and Tradition in Jewish South Carolina" (University of South Carolina Press, 2023).
