Pot Likker Soup with Skillet Cornbread

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The broth is the whole point here: collard greens simmered slow with a smoked ham hock until the cooking liquid turns silky, mineral-sweet and deeply smoky. Southern cooks have prized this "pot likker" for generations, and here it graduates from side-effect to main event, ladled over torn greens and served with a wedge of hot skillet cornbread for dunking.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp bacon fat or neutral oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 1/2 lb smoked ham hock (1 large or 2 small)
• 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 lb collard greens (about 2 large bunches)
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar, plus more to finish
• 1 tsp sugar
• kosher salt and black pepper

• 2 tbsp bacon fat, butter, or oil (for the skillet)
• 1 1/2 cups fine yellow cornmeal
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp sugar (optional)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

• hot sauce or pepper vinegar
• 1 small sweet onion, minced (optional)

Instructions

1. Strip the collard leaves from their thick stems. Stack the leaves, roll them into cigars, and slice crosswise into 1-inch ribbons. Wash in a sink of cold water, swishing to release grit, then lift out and drain. You'll have a mountain of greens; that's correct.
2. Heat the bacon fat in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook 6 to 8 minutes until soft and just starting to color. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
3. Add the ham hock, chicken broth, water, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a bare simmer, cover partially, and cook 75 to 90 minutes, until the hock meat pulls easily from the bone. Skim any heavy foam in the first 10 minutes.
4. Fish out the hock and set it on a plate to cool. Stir the collards into the pot in batches, letting each wilt before adding more. Simmer uncovered 35 to 45 minutes, until the greens are fully tender and the broth has darkened into true pot likker. Taste the liquid — this is what you're making, so season it seriously with salt and pepper.
5. While the greens simmer, make the cornbread. Put the 2 tablespoons bacon fat in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet and set it in the oven as it heats to 425°F, at least 15 minutes.
6. Whisk the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. In another bowl whisk the buttermilk, eggs, and melted butter. Pour wet into dry and stir just until combined — a few lumps are fine.
7. Pull the hot skillet out, swirl the fat to coat, and pour any excess into the batter (stir it in quickly). Scrape the batter into the skillet — it should sizzle — and bake 20 to 24 minutes, until the top is golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in the pan.
8. Pull the ham hock meat and skin from the bone, discard bone, fat, and gristle, and chop the meat. Stir it back into the pot. Fish out and discard the bay leaves.
9. Finish the likker with 1 tablespoon cider vinegar and the sugar, then taste again: it should be smoky, faintly sweet, salty, and bright. Add another splash of vinegar or a pinch of salt as needed.
10. Ladle into wide bowls, going heavy on the broth — about two-thirds liquid to one-third greens. Top with minced sweet onion and hot sauce, and serve with a thick wedge of warm cornbread for dunking.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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