Pressure Cooker Collard Greens

Name: Pressure Cooker Collard Greens Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 1 lb Collard Greens (I buy these washed and chopped in a bag, about 12 cups); 1 cup Yellow Onion (diced); 1/4 cup Butter (salted or unsalted work in this recipe); 10 cloves Garlic (about 2 tbsp minced); 1.25 lb smoked Turkey necks (about 2-3, fully cooked. I find these year-round at Walmart); 2 cups Chicken Broth (low sodium); 1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes; 1 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar; 1 tsp 24 Herbs Sprinkle Seasoning (Salt-free); 1 tbsp Granular Sweetener (or keto brown sugar replacement, or any sweetener that you prefer); 2 tsp Chicken Better than Bouillon (low sodium); 1/2 tsp Natural Ancient Sea Salt (optional, save until the end to salt to taste)

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These Instant Pot Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooker Collard Greens with smoked turkey deliver the same irresistible smoky taste as my collard greens with bacon but in less than half the time. Learn how to make collard greens in a pressure cooker like the Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi, as well as get tips to eliminate greens’ bitterness. This easy Southern-style recipe use simple ingredients and cooks in less than 30 minutes.

pressure cooker instant pot Collard Greens topped with red pepper flakes on a large bowl

Why Make Pressure Cooker Collard Greens

Quick and Easy: Unlike my slow cooker collard greens that take at least 4 hours to cook, pressure cooking collard greens saves so much time. The smoked turkey meat and greens take only 25 minutes in the pressure cooker. This recipe is also a dump-and-go, requiring minimal cooking skills.
Collard Greens with Smoked Turkey: These collard greens with smoked turkey necks are a great alternative to collard greens with ham hocks or other pork like my collard greens with bacon.
Collard Greens in the Ninja Foodi or Instant Pot: this recipe has been tested in the Ninja Foodi and the Instant Pot so feel free to use your favorite pressure cooker.

Ingredients Needed

Collard greens: I buy them washed and chopped to save time. My bags come without the hard ends, but you should check your greens to get rid of most of the hard stem ends.
Onion: I use a yellow onion that is diced
Butter: Unsalted or salted, depending on your preference
Garlic cloves: Minced
Smoked turkey necks: these come fully cooked from the market. You can use smoked turkey necks or another smoked turkey meat
Chicken Broth: I prefer low sodium
Red pepper flakes: If you don’t like spicy collard greens, then omit these
Apple cider vinegar: To get the bitterness out of the greens
Herb & spice blend: For added bold flavors without a lot of added ingredients
Sugar: I use either brown or regular granular keto substitutes for sugar. But, you can use whatever granular sweetener that you prefer.
Chicken broth paste: I use low sodium concentrated broth paste.

Collard greens, Onion, Butter, Garlic, Smoked turkey necks, Chicken broth, Red pepper flakes, Apple cider vinegar, Herb& spice blend, Sugar, Chicken broth paste on separate bowls

How To Make Collard Greens in a Pressure Cooker

Pressure cooking collard greens takes 4 simple steps:

Add all the ingredients (except collard greens and salt) to the bottom of the pressure cooker pot.
Pack the collard greens on top of the meat, onions, and other ingredients, lock the cooker lid and cook on high for 25 minutes.
Remove the turkey necks and pick off the meat.
Add the meat to the collard greens. Add salt to taste and stir.

4 steps to cook Collard Greens using a pressure cooker

Top Tips & FAQs

Buy washed and chopped collard greens to save prep time and energy
For this recipe, add the seasonings with the other ingredients in one step because the cooking time is short. For crockpot collard greens and my stovetop collard greens, I normally save the seasonings until the end for bolder flavors. But, since the cooking time is short in a pressure cooker little flavor is lost during the cooking process.
Remove the stem ends to take the bitterness out of the collard greens.

How long do collard greens take in the pressure cooker?

I pressure cook my collard greens with smoked turkey necks for 25 minutes. You should know that your Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi or other pressure cooker will need extra time to come to full pressure as well as time to release the pressure.

What does adding vinegar to collard greens do?

Vinegar helps to eliminate bitterness from the collard greens.

Can you overcook collard greens?

It’s almost impossible to overcook collard greens.

What takes bitterness out of collard greens?

Removing the stem ends, adding apple cider vinegar, and adequate cooking will take the bitterness out of collard greens.

Why do you add baking soda to collard greens?

Baking soda preserves the vegetable’s color and also brings a tenderizing effect. However, this practice has some downsides, so I’d rather cook my greens long enough to make them tender.

Recipes to Enjoy This With

Pressure Cooker Turkey Breast or any of these Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes
Southern Green Bean Casserole: use my Keto Green Bean Casserole for an option without fried onions
Keto Cranberry Sauce
Cauliflower Mac and Cheese

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