Sausage, Rice and Black-eyed Peas - Dutch Oven

By lindaauman

Collard greens are usually slow-cooked over a long period of time however when they are sliced thinly and cooked with the rice, they are tender as can be and melt in your mouth delicious. Just a quick tip, when you are cutting the greens, roll the tightly packed leaves together like a cigar and slice them cross-wise, it's called a chiffonade and will make your life a whole lot easier.
If you're a vegetarian, use vegetable broth, omit the sausage and add a second can of black-eyed peas. This really is an excellent recipe and a wonderful combination of flavors steeped in history and tradition. If you can't venture outside to make this in your dutch oven, try it on your stove top.

Ingredients

• 3 Tblsp cooking oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 scallions, white bulbs sliced and green tops cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 large stalk of celery, minced
• 1/2 lb collard greens, tough stems removed, leaves washed well and shredded
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 lb kielbasa or other smoked sausage, cut crosswise into 1/2 inch slices
• 1 15 oz can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/2 cups long-grain rice
• 3 cups canned low-sodium chicken broth or homemade stock
• 

Preparation

Step 1

Lightly oil or spray dutch oven.

On med-high heat, saute onions, celery and scallion bulbs in oil, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add the collard greens, salt, black pepper and cayenne and cook, stirring, until the greens wilt, about 1 minute.

Add the sausage, black-eyed peas and rice; cook, stirring for 30 minutes or until rice is well coated.

Stir in the broth.

Cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed.

Remove from the heat and stir in the scallion tops.