Ye’abesha Gomen – Ethiopian Collard Greens with Garlic, Olives, and Rosemary

Ethiopian cuisine is abundant in plants! Traditional Ethiopian dishes are often based on legumes—lentils and peas—or vegetables, like cabbage, collards, potatoes, and beets. Most often they're prepared with just a few other ingredients, including onions, garlic, and spices. They seem simple and yet they are packed with flavor!

The only modification I would make to their delicious plant-based creations would be to leave out the oil and salt.

Ye’abesha Gomen (Ethiopian sautéed collards) is one of these exquisite Ethiopian dishes.

It's collard greens lightly seasoned with garlic and tomatoes, and rosemary, and simmered until very tender.

If you're not familiar with the big, flat collard greens, they're right up there with kale being the most nutrient-dense vegetable you could have. They're rich in vitamins A, C, and K, have an all-over protective effect, from preventing premature aging to promoting gut health.

There's one more ingredient that flavors this dish, and that's olive oil! Traditionally, they use so much oil in this dish that olive is one of the primary flavors along with garlic and rosemary. That's why I couldn't just leave it out of my oil-free version the way I typically would.

To keep the olive flavor without using any extracted oil, I decided to blend a few whole olives with water to create an olive-water.

What's the difference between olive-water and olive oil?

Well, when you blend the olives you're not removing any of the nutrients. Yes, you are breaking down the fiber, but you're still getting it which is better than no fiber. Olive-water is significantly lower in calories and fat than olive oil, which is purely liquid fat.

Olives are high in salt, so if prefer to keep your sodium to a minimum, then you can soak the olives before hand. I'll cover this in the chef's notes.

Leafy greens come in all shapes, sizes, and flavors, and it's best to consume a variety. So if you're wondering how to prepare collards in a yummy way, Ye'abesha Gomen is a simple option that I really enjoy.

Ye’abesha Gomen

By Chef Katie Mae

Makes 2 servings | Ready in 20–50 minutes | Stores 5 days in fridge

INGREDIENTS

• ½ sweet onion, diced (3 oz)
• 4 garlic cloves, minced (1 teaspoon garlic granules)
• 1 bunch collard greens, sliced into thin ribbons
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• ¼ cup water
• 3 tablespoons kalamata olives, pitted (1 oz)*
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large skillet or sauté pan over medium heat, add the onion, garlic, collard greens, and tomatoes. Cover and sauté until the greens are tender to your liking (see notes below). Stir occasionally.
2. Once the greens are started, add the water, olives, and rosemary to a small blender. Blend into a smooth, thin liquid.
3. Once the onions are translucent, stir the rosemary-olive water into the collards.
4. Turn the heat to low-medium and continue sautéing until the greens are cooked to your desired texture and consistency.

CHEF'S NOTES

Traditionally, the greens in this dish are slow-cooked until they are very, very tender and an extra dark green. This could be anywhere from 40 to 60 minutes. You may recognize this as overcooking the collards relative to the way we would normally cook collards. For optimal nutrition from the collards, sauté them just long enough so that they have a bright green color, around 5 to 10 minutes. My preference is somewhere in the middle, around 25 minutes.

The taste of olives (traditionally from olive oil) is a significant part of this recipe’s delicious flavor. Instead of extracted oil, I use the whole olives that still have all of their nutrients, not just the fat.

That being said, olives are produced with a large amount of salt. If you wish to reduce the amount of salt, you can soak the olives in a bowl of water for a ½ hour ahead of time. Drain the water before using. You can do this a second time to reduce the sodium levels even further.