I like to make this when I’ll be eating alone because it can be made in one skillet and ingredients are easily tampered with for a different taste each time you prepare these garlicky greens with a fried egg perched on top. Whenever I buy greens I immediately wash and seperate them upon arriving home and then store them in a large reusable takeout container on top of a piece of damp paper towel. I find that this method ensures gorgeous green leaves for at least a week, during which I will usually have made these greens and copious green smoothies. You can use whichever types of greens you like; for this meal I used my 3 favourites which are red swiss chard, kale, and bok choy. Peppery greens like mustard greens and broccoli rabe would also be lovely accompaniements to the garlic and soy dressing. Garlic chili paste is my condiment of choice for this dinner; sriracha, salsa, spicy mustard or even cilantro pesto are all perfect too.
garlicky greens with a fried egg:
About 4 cups of mixed greens, roughly torn into small-ish pieces
2 tsp. mild cooking oil such as grapeseed or canola
4 cloves of garlic, minced finely
1/4 cup of soy sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. rice wine vinegar
1tsp. dried chili flakes (this makes it quite spicy so scale back by at least half if you don’t want that much heat)
1 tsp. toasted sesame seeds
1 egg
Your choice of savoury condiment
1. Over medium-high heat cook the greens in the oil, adding some water if needed. Using kitchen tongs toss the greens quickly as they cook, after a minute or two add the minced garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, hot chilis and sesame seeds and continue to cook until the greens are wilted and very bright. Transfer to your plate.
2. Put the skillet back on the burner and fry an egg, there should be enough oil left over that you don’t need to add more but be the judge of that yourself. To me the idea of a runny yolk is romantic when eating eggs but in reality I hate runny yolks and make sure my egg is completely cooked through before I eat it; again, I leave this in your hands.
3. Place the egg on top of your mountain of greens, add condiment of choice and eat rapidly and happily.
My top 3 trying-to-relax-after-work artists are Nick Drake, Chet Baker, and American Analog Set. Therefore it’s not stretch at all to say that I’ll be listening to this band at least 3 nights a week and lately more specifically their album Set Free (I tend to oscillate between Set Free and the very different The Fun of Watching Fireworks.) Their music is always perfectly suited to my mood and to my environment, insistently adaptable to pretty much everything for 10 years of my life.
American Analog Set – Green Green Grass
