Cracker Barrel Turnip Greens Recipe

I’ve been cooking up Cracker Barrel Turnip Greens to bring that Southern comfort right to my family’s dining table.

I make sure to clean the greens thoroughly, because nothing ruins a good dish like a bit of grit.

Simmering the greens with a ham hock gives them a smoky depth that’s hard to resist.

What I truly love about this recipe is how it turns a humble vegetable into a side dish that can steal the spotlight.

Here’s a tip:

Add a splash of vinegar at the end for a tangy kick that balances the richness!

How to make Cracker Barrel turnip greens

Much like any good home-cooked dish, you don’t need anything complicated here.

With primarily tried and true ingredients that we all have lying around already you’ll have everything needed to make the perfect turnip greens bowl.

A few things to note here are that turnip greens can be a bit bitter, that’s why we will be using a bit of salt and sugar in order to eliminate that bitterness and make them much more palatable when put alongside the chicken broth.

Additionally, if you need you can also swap the turnip greens for collard greens, these can be cooked in exactly the same way and also follow the same storage and reheating methods mentioned below.

Ingredients

• • Smoked Ham Slices or bacon slices (we recommend 4 slices cut into 8 pieces)
  • 1 cup of diced onions
  • Turnip greens, 2 bunches, or 32oz diced (collard greens of the same amount can be used)
  • 2 cups of chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
  • Red pepper flakes (to taste)
  • Sugar (to taste)
  • Black pepper (to taste)
  • Olive oil (8tbsp)
  • Water
  • Diced turkey neck (optional garnish)
  • Garlic (optional)

Instructions

Step 1:

We’ll be using a pressure cooker/instant pot for this.

Start off by adding the olive oil, ham (or bacon if you decided to use that), and turkey to the cooker and use the Saute Function to begin cooking them.

If you wish you can also add some diced garlic for a little extra flavor, but it’s not necessary.

Step 2:

Next, we cook the chopped onion until translucent and then we add them to the instant pot.

Step 3:

Wash and dice the turnip greens and add them to the pot along with the chicken broth and apple cider vinegar.

At this stage, we can also add additional seasonings to taste including black pepper, red pepper flakes, and sugar.

As with any kind of seasoning that can be adjusted to taste, it can be difficult to get it right the first time.

A safe amount to use if you are unsure is 1 teaspoon of each. It might sound like a lot but since this is a fairly large portion, it will result in a reasonably balanced taste.

Step 4:

Next, we turn off the instant pot and change it from Saute to Manual mode, we’re going to cook all the ingredients together on the ‘high’ setting for 30 minutes.

After that you can sit down and relax, one of the great things about this recipe is that after the initial cutting everything else it’s hands-off.

Step 5:

Once you are ready to eat you can simply scoop everything out of the instant pot.

To finish it off you can also add some of the turkey neck or additional pepper to taste.

What to serve with Cracker Barrel turnip greens

As a classic southern greens dish, there are lots of fun sides you can serve with it.

But keep in mind that this can also be the main course if you’re looking for a lighter meal.

Buttermilk Biscuits

When the vegetables themselves aren’t quite enough, nothing rounds off a meal quite like a freshly baked buttermilk biscuit.

Cracker Barrel will often serve this alongside the dish with real butter.

Gravy n’ Biscuits

Another great option if you’re looking to make this your main dish are biscuits and gravy, they do a great job at adding that richness and fullness to the meal and are another favorite amongst Cracker Barrel patrons.

Southern Fried Chicken

What better accompaniment is there to a bowl of classic, country-style turnip greens than some traditional southern fried chicken.

The two complement each other perfectly and are sure to leave you satisfied.

Country Fried Steak

After a perfectly fried steak topped with gravy, Cracker Barrel turnip greens offer the perfect complement to the steak’s richness.

Giving you that nice palette cleanses with some well-cooked vegetables.

How to reheat Cracker Barrel turnip greens

The provided recipe shows how to make quite a few portions so it’s inevitable that you might need to keep some for later.

Here are some of the best ways to reheat turnip greens while retaining the flavor and texture.

How to reheat turnip greens in the instant pot

As they will keep for several days in the fridge after cooking, you can safely reheat them without any loss of flavor in the instant pot you cooked them in.

It should take around 35 minutes to completely reheat turnip greens in the instant pot, but it depends on your preferred settings.

Compared to the slow simmering you would need to do on the stove, this translates into a time-saving solution.

How to reheat turnip greens on the stove

You can just pour all the ingredients including liquids in a medium-large pan and slowly heat until simmering, then you can serve right away.

How to reheat turnip greens from frozen

One of the nice things about this recipe is that you can freeze it (including the liquid) and store it for up to several months after cooking.

So regardless of how much you decide to make you’ll always be able to finish it.

To reheat turnip greens from frozen you simply need to place the entire block into a pot over the stove which you can slowly reheat until the whole thing is simmering and serve straight away.

You can also place it into an ovenproof bowl and cook on low heat in the oven until it is warmed all the way through.

You can also use the instant pot you originally used to cook them, and the result will be just as excellent.

How to store Cracker Barrel turnip greens

What’s convenient about this recipe is that you can scale it up to whatever portion size you wish without fear that you’ll need to finish it fast.

Here are some ideal ways to store Cracker Barrel turnip greens if you find yourself not being able to finish it all at once.

Store in the fridge

Allow the turnip greens to cool thoroughly before storing.

Once cooled either pour them into a suitable sealed container or you can use a bowl and cover it with cling film. You can then store it for 2-3 days.

Remember to reheat and eat the turnip greens after a few days, because it’s never a good idea to leave cooked food for too long in the fridge.

If you’re not planning to eat them soon, it’s better to move your turnip greens inside the freezer.

Store in the freezer

Assuming your freezer is large enough you can also refreeze the whole thing and reheat it up to several months later.

To do this just ensure the food has cooled completely, pour into a suitable bowl or container, and freeze until needed.

When it’s time to reheat it, you can reheat turnip greens directly from the freezer.

However, letting them rest a room temperature for 10-20 minutes before reheating might also be a good idea.