I can never resist beautiful Swiss chard, especially w
hen it’s both fresh and on sale. The stems were still red and unblemished, and the leaves were plump, not wilted (although wilted can usually be revived with a cold water bath).
I chopped the stems and tore the leaves after washing thoroughly. Washed and sliced the leeks, then sauteed them with salt. After about 5 minutes, I added the chard stems. When they started to dry out, I added a little water.
Once everything softens up nicely, I piled the chard leaves high, then smooshed the lid down on the pan. Simmered/braised for about 8-10 minutes, and while that was cooking, I chopped a couple of pieces of preserved lemon. Once the greens were gently cooked, I added the preserved lemon and turned the leaves with tongs. I left the pan on the heat for a couple more minutes.
This is a really quick way to cook greens. If you don’t have preserved lemon, you can add a bit of lemon juice. One of my favorite things to add is hot pepper sauce (vinegar) to my greens after serving.
Tonight’s dish was served with Turmeric Falafel + Cilantro Tahini. Confession: I don’t like Tahini. Instead, I added juice from the preserved lemon jar to Greek yogurt, threw in cilantro and salt, and mixed well. It was perfect with the Falafel, which I flattened into medallions. If you check out the link to the Plant Strong Vegan’s blog, you’ll see much prettier photos than the one below! 