Healthy Green sides for Fried Chicken Potluck

[aussiewonder]

The girls are having a potluck where the main dish is Oven Fried Chicken. In the spirit of keeping it healthy I'd like to do something green for a side, and not salad...it's far too cold out! I think someone is doing a coucous side dish so I'm really looking to do something vegetable/green oriented. Any suggestions?

[jacinthe]

You could take kale, turnip greens, collard greens, or any greens of that nature, and cook them down with a touch of olive oil, perhaps sauteing some onions in the olive oil beforehand. I always feel nauseatingly healthy when I make greens like that.

[hannaone]

Korean Style Brocoli Salad (Fusion)
Ingredients 6 cups broccoli florets

Dressing
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Korean rice vinegar
1 tablespoon pure roasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon honey
2 inch knob of fresh ginger
4 cloves fresh garlic
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Optional:
1 teaspoon coarse ground red chili pepper (chili flakes)

Directions:

Preparation
Brocoli
Heat water in stove top or electric steamer (or a large lidded pot with a colander, sieve, or strainer that can sit above water level).
Wash brocoli florets in cold water then place into steamer. Steam until tender crisp (3 to 5 minutes).

Sesame Seeds
Check for and discard stones and broken kernals (Usually only found in bulk product).
Heat a dry skillet/pan over medium high heat, add sesame seeds, and toast until golden browned, stirring often. Remove from heat and let cool.

Thin slice the garlic, then sliver each slice.

Peel ginger and finely grate.

Mix Dressing
Whisk soy sauce, vinegar, oil and honey together in a large bowl until until well mixed.
Add ginger, garlic, and 1/2 the sesame seeds and mix well.
Let stand at room temperature for at least 15 minutes to let the flavor develop.

Final Mix
Add brocoli to dressing and toss. Let stand at room temperature for up to two hours, tossing every so often.
Move brocoli to serving dish and pour the dressing from the bowl over it. Sprinkle with remaining sesame seed and chili flakes if desired.

[Anne H]

hannaone, is Korean rice vinegar very different from Japanese? I think I have Japanese rice vinegar, and I'd like to try this recipe.

[hannaone]

They are somewhat different, but you should have no problems subbing the Japanese vinegar.

[alkapal]

hannaone, i KNOW that has got to be fabulous!!! thanks.

[rcallner]

Steamed kale tossed lightly with olive oil emulsified in a jar with a little minced garlic, and fresh lemon juice. Salt, pepper, good hot or room temp.

[lhb78]

spicy black eyed peas are warm and healthy

[aussiewonder]

lhb78 this sounds interesting, any suggestions on 'how to', my bean skills are pretty limited to blanched green beans.

[fmed]

My choice would be a tart (not creamy) coleslaw.

[HLing]

I agree with fmed on the coleslaw idea. In fact, I always crave those Vietnamese/Japanese light marinated sweet and tart (first lightly marinated with salt, then rinse away, then add some vinegar and sugar) radish and carrot pickles when I have Fried Chicken. It just seem so refreshing. Guess it's not quite traditional, though.

[fmed]

HLing - let's make it interesting then: a medley of 'quick pickles' (coleslaw, asian carrot and daikon pickle, cucumber sambal, green mango pickle, asian bean thread noodle salad, and so on)

In any case, 'tart' is a perfect counterpoint to 'fried. '

[HLing]

well then I would definitely need a big bowl of nicely steamed white rice. In fact, the first thing I do when I get my favorite fried chicken to go home, is to cook some nice short grain Japanese rice. I will actually wait for that rice to be ready before eating the chicken. Luckily the fried chicken i get passes the "cold chicken" test in the crunch and flavor department....

[alkapal]

fmed -- sounds delicious!

[mojoeater]

Sauteed okra with garlic, olive oil, salt & pepper.

[piccola]

I'd do braised greens, either rapini or kale, with lots of garlic.

[jlafler]

You could do sauteed greens (collards would be traditional), but that may not be practical if you have to transport and reheat them. Roasted vegetables -- green beans, as Anne H suggests, or carrots -- would be more durable. You could cook them most of the way through in something like a pyrex baking dish, then cover with foil and reheat them in the oven with the fried chicken.

[fourunder]

Oven Fried Chicken suggests Southern overtones to me.....

Collard or Mustard Greens simmered with Smoked Turkey Necks.....or

Simple Steamed Broccoli.

I also like the ideas of green beans or Haricot Vert with almonds......or

A medley of Green Zucchini, Yellow Squash, Green Beans, Broccoli, Carrots and Red Pepper......maybe some Cauliflower.....or any combination of.

I would have said Creamed Spinach.....but Some would consider that unhealthy

[diablo]

Collards with smoked turkey necks occured to me as soon as I read this post.

[drewb123]

I just made an amazing spinach dish.
3 tBS of olive oil
1/2 red onion sliced 2 cloves of garlic in pan for about 8 min
then add 1/4 C chix stock 1 TBSP of soysauce and 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes add spinach 1/3 at a time until wilted. use 10-20 0z of spinach and just keep adding till wilted then grate lemon rind on top.

YUM!!! it was in Giada's everyday pasta book.

[chowser]

Fried chicken and collard greens seem to go hand in hand.

[madball911]

If you can find good asparagus this time of year, toss it with a little olive oil and pepper. Roast at 400 until it's the tenderness you like, then add a little butter (or butter substitute, it works too), and equal parts soy sauce and balsamic vinegar. Whenever I make this, it never makes it to the table - everyone stands around the dish on the counter, eating with their fingers.

[Anne H]

Broiled green beans. Toss beans with a little olive oil and garlic and S&P, spread on cookie sheet under broiler, cook until some black spots appear, turning once. So delicious my family eats at least twice as many beans as they do when I fix them any other way.

Can also add sliced onion and/or sliced sweet red pepper and broil those with the beans.