Miss Mary 's Fresh Turnip Greens

I brought several large bags of freshly-picked greens to my neighbor Mary and asked her to teach me how to cook them. She sat her grand-daughters and me on the kitchen floor, and she taught us all how to tear, prepare, and cook them.

ingredients

4 slices bacon
dash Louisiana Hot Sauce
1 clove garlic, sliced
1 very large bunch turnip greens,
stemmed, cleaned, and cut into strips
1/2 cup chicken stock
your favorite seasonings
red pepper flakes

directions

1
Fold fresh-picked greens in half lengthwise, press the fold, and pull out the spine of the leaves.
2
Fill a tub or your clean sink with water. Add salt to kill any bugs. Wash and rinse your greens 6-7 times until no grit remains.
3
Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a large pot on medium-high heat until crispy. Remove bacon, chop, then set aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
4
To your pot with bacon drippings, add the hot sauce, garlic and saute briefly.
5
Add the clen, torn turnip greens and toss, sauteeing until they start to wilt.
6
Add the chicken stock and 1/2 cup water and cover, lowering the heat to a simmer.
7
Let simmer until the greens are tender, 30 to 40 minutes.
8
Uncover, add back the bacon, raise the heat to medium-high, to reduce the liquid some, about 2 minutes. Mix in your favorite seasonings. Sprinkle on red pepper flakes.