Callaloo Recipe
Callaloo is a vibrant, healthy, and fresh way of cooking leafy green vegetables that bring the taste of the islands straight to your table. Smokey bacon and spicy peppers make it a family favorite. Hashtag: quick, easy, and delicious!
Are you looking for a tasty way to incorporate more healthy greens into your diet? Then, this flavorful callaloo recipe is just what the doctor ordered. Plus, you don’t need fancy ingredients to make your healthy greens taste amazing.
If you’ve never heard of this amazing vegetable (also called calaloo or kallaloo), you don’t know what you’re missing. This green leafy vegetable is popular in the Caribbean (especially Jamaica) and other regions. In the U.S., you can usually find these tasty greens at Caribbean and Asian markets.
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Content… What Makes It Different? |
What Makes Callaloo Different from Other Greens?
Technically, callaloo is either amaranth or taro leaves. However, other green leafy plants are called callaloo, depending on where in the Caribbean. So that’s one difference, but they definitely have that classic “greens” taste you find in kale, spinach, and collards.
But what makes callaloo stand out is the preparation. Think delicious Caribbean greens prepared in a way that gives them a rich Southern flavor.
How to Make Callaloo
Callaloo
- Prep Callaloo – Remove leaves and soft stems from the callaloo branches. Then, soak them in cold water for 5-10 minutes or until done with prepping. (Photo 1)
- Aromatics – Next, slice the onions, mince the garlic, and dice the tomatoes. Set them aside.
- Chop – Remove the callaloo from the water and chop it. (Photo 2)
- Fry – Place bacon in a saucepan until crispy. Then add the onions, garlic, and fresh thyme, and saute for about a minute. (Photo 3-4)
- Add Flavor – Add the tomatoes, scotch bonnet pepper, and smoked paprika. Sauté for 2-3 more minutes. (Photos 5-6)
- Steam Callaloo – Finally, add the vegetables and salt, mix well, and steam for 6-8 minutes or until the leaves are tender. Add a little water as needed. Adjust seasonings and turn off the heat. (Photo 7)
Plantains
- Peel the plantains with a sharp knife.
- Slice them lengthwise into medium-sized slices and set aside.
- Coat a large frying pan with cooking oil spray. Spray the tops of the plantains with a generous layer of oil spray and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Fry – Let the plantains fry on medium heat, shaking the pan to redistribute them every few minutes. (Photo 8)
- Cook – As the plantains brown, add cooking oil spray, salt, and pepper as needed until they reach the desired color and texture.
- Serve – Remove and serve with callaloo.
Recipe Tips
- This recipe can become vegan. Omit the bacon and add smoked paprika to replace the smokiness. 😉
- Callaloo and saltfish are amazing. Soak salted cod a couple of times, then break it up and add it to the greens.
- If spicy foods aren’t your friend, omit the scotch bonnet pepper. You can replace it with a sweet banana or bell pepper.
- This delicious green vegetable can be hard to find but easy to grow. Even if you just have a patio or room with lots of sunlight, you only need a pot, dirt, sunlight, and callaloo seeds.
Make-Ahead and Storage Instructions
You can make callaloo the day before with no problem. However, fried plantains taste much better fresh, so do those just before serving. Follow the recipe instructions for the greens, and then store them in an airtight container in the fridge.
Store leftover callaloo in the fridge for 3-5 days in an airtight container. Reheat the callaloo on the stove on medium heat until warmed through, or zap it in the microwave. To reheat the plantains, pop them in the oven for a few minutes at 350℉ (180℃).👌
What to Serve With Callaloo
Traditionally, you serve callaloo with boiled dumplings, roasted breadfruit, or fried plantains. Jamaican rice and peas are a perfect main dish if you want to go almost meatless.
You can also serve it with anything that goes well with collard greens, such as skillet cornbread and fried chicken. And don’t forget the sweet iced tea. 😉
More Tasty Jamaican Recipes to Try
Watch How to Make It
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”7UPOR1bC” upload-date=”2019-11-08T03:52:07.000Z” name=”Callaloo (Jamaican-style)” description=”Callaloo Jamaican Style – A vibrant, healthy and fresh way of cooking leafy vegetables. Quick, easy and delicious!”]
This blog post was originally published in August 2014 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video
Callaloo Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1.5-pound bunch (680g) callaloo (or kale or collards)
- 2 thick strips bacon, cut in pieces
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium onion
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 sprig fresh thyme
- 1 fresh tomato
- 1 whole scotch bonnet pepper
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 3-4 ripe plantains
- cooking spray (or very little cooking oil)
Instructions
- Cut leaves and soft stems from the callaloo branches, then soak in a bowl of cold water for about 5-10 minutes or until finished with prep.
- Proceed to slice the onions, mince the garlic, and dice the tomatoes. Set aside.
- Remove callaloo from the water and cut it into chunks.
- Place bacon in a saucepan and cook until crispy. Then add onions, garlic, and thyme, and stir for a minute or more.
- Add tomatoes, scotch bonnet pepper, and smoked paprika. Sauté for 2-3 more minutes.
- Finally, add the greens and salt, mix well, and steam for about 6-8 minutes or until leaves are tender. Add a bit of water as needed, adjust seasonings, and turn off the heat.
- Using a sharp knife, cut both ends off the plantains. That will make it easier to grab the skin of the plantains. Then slit a shallow line down the long seam of the plantain, but peel only as deep as the peel. Remove plantain peel by pulling it back.
- Slice the plantain into medium size lengthwise slices and set aside.
- Coat a large frying pan with cooking oil spray or drizzle a bit of cooking oil. Spray the tops of the plantains with a generous layer of oil spray and sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Let the plantains fry on medium heat, shaking the frying pan to redistribute them every few minutes.
- As the plantains brown, continue to add more cooking oil spray, salt, and pepper (if needed) until they have reached the desired color and texture.
- Remove and serve with callaloo.
Tips & Notes:
- Crisp, fresh greens taste the best. Avoid wilted leaves, brown or yellow edges, blemishes, and slime. They should smell sweet, not sour.
- Callaloo can be hard to find, but it is super easy to grow. Even if you just have a patio or room with lots of sunlight, all you need is a pot, dirt, sunlight, and seeds.
- Here’s how to make peeling the plantains easy: Start by cutting both ends off the plantain. Next, slit a shallow line down the plantain’s long seam and peel by gently pulling the skin back.
- Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
Good yummy greens, can do it with escarole too, delicious.
Amazing!!!!! That looks absolutely delicious!! Glad you loved it. Looking forward to you trying more of my recipes.
Not bacon not everyone can do bacon but you can try it with the smoked Turkey. I make this as a side dish for Thanksgiving
Yes, you could leave out the bacon and use any protein of your choice.
Callaloo grows ‘wild’ around here in NYS. I forage it early in the growing season and make a dish very much like your recipe but without the bacon or plantain. it is delicious and nutritious. I have even shown people how to pick/use it at the CSA where I am a member.
Love vegetarian and low carb foods and this one is terrific..
Thank you so much. I love fresh veggies too and have more vegetable recipes in my daily routine. Stay tuned to have more amazing recipes:)
Thanks for the recipe! I am Cuban and worked in Jamaica as a teacher. I never saw this plant here until yesterday! I just picked it and ran into internet for the recipe as I had almost forgotten how to cook it. Thanks, I found this site. Appreciated!
Awesome! Glad it was of help.
I found some at our co-op and hear that you can find it at Asian stores. It’s also amaranth.
This was delicious! I used some frozen kale and habanero hot sauce in place of the scotch bonnet. I will definitely make this again.
Awesome! Thanks!
Stuart where do you find your canned Callaloo.
What does one look for when they purchase fresh callaloo.
I love it and can never find it.
Hi Rossann, just wanted to help out a little. Especially with the quarantine, Amazon has become my new best friend, they have canned and fresh callaloo. It might be worth a shot to try them out. Let me know what happens
I have made this with canned callaloo and it was AMAZING! I’ve never had fresh callaloo before, so if you have maybe Imma is right about textures but MY GOD it tasted so good I’m making it for the hundredth time tonight!
I found your site recently and have greatly enjoyed your recipes. They are clearly written and have given me a starting point for making these dishes when I’m craving Caribbean food and can’t make it home lol. My family is from Trinidad and Tobago. Callaloo is a fragrant soup often made with crab and served with rice.
So happy I could be of help. Thanks for taking time out to share your thoughts.
Your recipe is quick and easy. I use it and increase the amounts as I prepare it for a large party of 50+people. I’ve been using it for about 3 years and its always a hit. Thank you for having this trusted site.
Woow! Amazing! Thank you for letting me know and for the continued support. =)
Hi Stuart ,The texture would be off . It’s best to use fresh for this recipe.
Well I’m on my way to the market to try this delicious looking recipe! I can’t wait i”ll let you know how it came out and by the way your plantains looks delicious. Thank you for sharing!
Delicious!! My husband, who’s Jamaican, loved it too! Callaloo is not available in our small town in Ontario but we recently went to a big city where they had nice, fresh bunches. Yay! Thanks for this excellent recipe.
Wohooo! Glad it turned out great for you, Patricia.
Thanks so much for the recipe- I made this last week. I used cod fish after I soaked it a few times and spinach instead of the bacon and Callaloo. My family loved it. So good, I wish I made more. I’m making it again tonight and tripling the ingredients and will use kale instead of spinach. This might be the 4th recipe I’ve used from you. Love them!
Thank you for all the kind words, Lala! I love your own touch to this recipe. Keep it up!