NC BBQ Dim Sum: Potlikker Soup with Collard Greens Wontons

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One of the coolest parts of a CSA is discovering new veggies.  Collard greens, while fairly common in southern dishes, were something I never had picked up before.  Spinach is in my wheelhouse, and leafy greens had bitten me in the past.  Curse you arugula; that's waaaaay too bitter for me.  So when collards started showing up, it was a new challenge to find recipes that weren't just using them as sandwich/wrap alternatives.  While trying to replace bread is not a great way to get into my good graces, collards redeemed themselves and may have even pushed past spinach with this recipe.  I don't prefer soup, but I finished every drop of the leftover broth.  The extra nutritional value is just a bonus on top of the tangy, savory taste.

Ingredients  Based on Southern Style Collard Greens from Southern Living (I made 1/2 a serving)
6 oz salted pork belly finely chopped
1 medium sweet onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 - 1.5, 32oz container chicken broth
1.5lb collards washed and trimmed.  Cut into ribbons.
1/6 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 + 1/8 tsp pepper
46 wonton wrappers

Heat a large stock pan over high heat.  Cook pork belly over heat until browned.  Remove from heat; add sweet onion and garlic cloves.  Cook until soft.  Add back pork belly.

Deglaze pan with chicken broth.  Add all the ingredients except the wrappers.

Put lid on pot.  Let cook for 3 hours until soft.  Check the liquid level and add some water if it gets too low.

Take off heat and strain the solids from the liquid reserving all the liquid.  This is the soup!  Let the greens cool a bit.

Time for some wonton folding!  I followed the tutorial from the Kitchn.  I used the soup to wet the edges of the wonton wrapper for an extra vinegar punch.

This might take awhile.  In the meantime, boil some water to cook the wontons.  You might alternatively want to boil the soup and cook the wontons there.  I didn't want to lose more liquid.

I couldn't wait and had a bowl of soup while boiling wontons. Sorry, not sorry.

Cook in batches; give the wontons some room in the pot.  Boil for about 5 minutes.

There are about 4 in the pot here.

Strain out and add to the soup.  Enjoy!  This is amazing reheated if it lasts that long; I was excited every day I had this for lunch.

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