Southern Turnip Greens Recipe

Turnip greens are one of the most iconic sides of Southern cuisine. A Sunday dinner wouldn’t be complete without them. Looking to add turnips to your culinary arsenal? You’re in luck! Today, I’m sharing my Southern turnip greens recipe.

Turnip recipes are often passed down from generation to generation. My recipe came together from a number of sources. I got some elements from my father, and others from the various restaurants I worked at over the years. One could say it’s a Frankenstein’s monster of a recipe!

Ingredients For Southern Turnip Greens

• 1 bag of frozen turnips or 2 bushels of fresh turnips
• Conecuh Sausage, roughly 1 link*
• Vegetable Soup Mix, 1 packet
• Yellow Onion, diced
• Garlic powder
• sugar, 1 tablespoon
• 1 tablespoon of lard
• salt and pepper

*A quick note on the sausage. Conecuh sausage is a locally famous brand in Alabama and the surrounding areas. It has a distinct flavor that is really key to this dish. The sausage is the reason I don’t add bacon or ham hocks to these greens. The sausage is that good. If you can’t get it but still want to try the recipe, add a couple of pieces of bacon in its place.

How To Prep Turnip Greens

If you are going with frozen turnip greens, you can skip this section. Your prep involves gathering ingredients, dicing the sausage into thin medallions, and chopping the onion.

For those that opted to go with fresh greens, it’s time to get to work. The first step is getting the greens chopped. You basically want to get as much of the leaf off the stem as you can. You don’t want the stems in your turnips. It’s a tedious process, but the end product will be worth it.

The next step in the process is cleaning the greens. My first time cooking fresh greens, I thought I did a good job. I rinsed them off with my sink sprayer in a strainer pretty thoroughly. And hey, I’m a professional cook, I know what I’m doing!

Boy was I wrong. The greens turned out delicious, but they had a nice gritty texture I was certainly not going for. I learned a valuable lesson: rinsing is not enough. Those greens need a bath!

Fill up one side of your kitchen sink with water and place a colander in the other. Dunk the chopped greens in and gently stir them around. Let them sit for a couple of minutes. Give them a final stir and then transfer them to the colander. Using your sprayer, give them a final shower and they should be good and clean.

Gather your remaining ingredients, chop your sausage into thin medallions, chop your onion, and you are ready to cook Southern turnip greens!

Adding Sausage And Onion

You’ll need a large enough pot to contain the greens and some water. The greens don’t have to be covered all the way, as they will wilt over time, but you will be adding a good bit of water. This pot will need a lid.

Once you’ve chosen your pot, place it on the stove over medium heat. Add your lard and get it melting. When the lard is ready, throw in diced sausage. The sausage doesn’t have to cook all the way through, we just want to render some fat before adding the greens. This should take about 3 to 5 minutes.

Go ahead and add the chopped onion while the sausage is cooking. Like the sausage, you don’t have to cook it all the way through. We are just going to give the onions a head start. Give them a 1 to 2-minute saute and it’s time to move on.

Cooking My Southern Turnip Greens Recipe

Now that the core of our flavor profile has been established, it’s time to add the greens. Once they are securely in the pot, fill it up at least halfway with water. Again, the greens don’t have to be covered, as they will wilt during the cooking process. Return the pot to the heat.

Let the greens cook for a bit before seasoning. You want them wilted down so the seasoning spreads easily. This should only take about 10 to 15 minutes.

The last steps are to add the seasonings. Toss in the vegetable soup mix, garlic powder, sugar, salt, and pepper. Be generous with the salt and pepper. Give the greens a good stir to make sure the spices are distributed well.

Now comes the hard part: the waiting game! Greens take a long time to cook. Once they have come to a simmer, turn the heat to medium-low. Give them an occasional stir and check for seasoning. Adjust as necessary until they taste just right.

Turnip greens take about an hour and a half to cook. There’s a saying in the South that greens are ready when they look like old money. You can also give them a taste test to check for doneness. If the greens are tender and not chewy, they are ready.

Fried Turnip Greens!?

If you don’t have hours to cook, you can always try fried turnip greens. No, these are not made in a deep fryer. I’m talking pan-fried turnip greens.

You can use all the same ingredients as my original recipe. Start by rendering some lard in a skillet on medium-high heat. Toss in your sausage and onions and give them a good stir. Cook until the onions are soft and the sausage is mostly cooked through.

When the sausage is ready, toss in the turnip greens. Add your seasonings and give a good stir. This method of cooking turnip greens should take about 10 to 15 minutes. Check the greens for softness. As soon as they are tender, the fried turnip greens are done.

What Goes With Southern Turnip Greens

My southern turnip greens recipe goes great with a number of dishes. Turnips in general will fit in anywhere other greens would go on a menu. Many restaurants across the South offer turnip greens as a side option.

Turnips are one of the quintessential Southern Sunday dinner sides. They make an excellent companion to fried chicken, fried pork chops, and even fried fish. I enjoy them with meatloaf as well. Greens complement all of the major meat groups fairly well. For more information, check out my Ultimate Southern Sunday dinner ideas guide.

Greens go great with starchy sides. I usually pair them with either my Southern-fried potatoes or some type of sweet potato dish, such as sweet potato casserole. Black-eyed peas and lima beans are other excellent choices.

Turnip greens are a must-have for Thanksgiving in my house. They are one of the cornerstone sides along with dressing, mashed potatoes, and southern fried potatoes.

Turnip Greens vs Collard Greens

Turnips and collards are often used interchangeably, but there are some differences. Collards are a little more bitter. They also are typically served with pepper sauce. Turnips tend to be a bit softer, while collards have a slightly more robust flavor. Turnip greens offer slightly better nutritional value.

I have always preferred turnips to collards, though I enjoy both. The robust flavor and bitterness of collards can be a turn-off for some. If you are entertaining guests and aim to please the most people, I would go with turnips over collards. This southern turnip greens recipe is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

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