Collard greens substitutes
Collard greens substitutes — 6 options, ranked, with the exact amount
Use Kale (lacinato or curly)
Same amount by weight as the collard greens
Cooked 15-20 minutes instead of 30-45
Kale is the best substitute for collard greens, swapped 1:1 by weight and cooked about ten minutes less - lacinato (dinosaur) kale is the closest match, especially for Ethiopian gomen. Green cabbage or British spring greens also work 1:1 and taste milder and sweeter. Mustard or turnip greens keep the southern character but are much peppery-sharper, and spinach should be a last resort because it collapses to almost nothing.
- Verdict —
- Works
- Best for —
- gomen (Ethiopian collards)
Updated 26 Jul 2026 · no sponsored swaps
Every option, one card
Ranked| # | Substitute | Instead of collard greens | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kale (lacinato or curly)gomen (Ethiopian collards) | Same amount by weightCooked 15-20 minutes instead of 30-45Works | Works |
| 2 | Spring greens or green cabbagegomen | Same amount by weightCooked 20-30 minutesWorks | Works |
| 3 | Mustard greens or turnip greenssouthern pot greens | Same amount by weightCooked 20-30 minutesTweak it | Tweak it |
| 4 | Swiss chardquick sauteed greens | Same amount by weightAdded for the last 5-10 minutes onlyYou'll taste it | You'll taste it |
| 5 | Savoy cabbagegomen | Same amount by weightCooked 20-25 minutesWorks | Works |
| 6 | Spinach (last resort)emergencies | Roughly 1 ½ times the weight, added in the final 2-3 minutesYou'll taste it | You'll taste it |
Kale (lacinato or curly)
similar taste and texture
Sturdy dark brassica leaves from the same family as collards.
- Best for
- gomen (Ethiopian collards), southern braised greens, soups and stews, sauteed sides
The closest all-round swap. Both are tough leaves that need real cooking and hold their shape, and both taste mildly cabbagey. Kale is more mineral and less sweet, with a slightly bitter finish, and it softens faster - so start checking at 15 minutes. Lacinato has flat leaves and eats closest to collards; curly kale traps more pot liquor in its ruffles, which is no bad thing.
Spring greens or green cabbage
similar taste and texture
Loose-leafed spring greens, or the outer leaves of an ordinary green cabbage, sliced into ribbons.
- Best for
- gomen, braised greens with smoked meat, budget cooking
British spring greens are effectively the same vegetable as collards, so that swap is nearly invisible. Plain green cabbage is a close cousin but sweeter and softer, with none of collards' faint bitterness, so a gomen made with it tastes noticeably milder - a squeeze of lemon and a bit more black pepper brings it back into line. It also cooks down more, so buy a slightly bigger head than you think you need.
Mustard greens or turnip greens
different taste, similar texture
Thinner, peppery brassica leaves traditional in southern cooking.
- Best for
- southern pot greens, mixed greens, greens with ham hock or smoked turkey
Traditional partners for collards rather than imitations. Both are distinctly hot and sharp - mustard greens especially taste almost horseradish-like when cooked briefly - so a straight swap makes a spicier, more aggressive pot. Two easy fixes: mix them half and half with cabbage, or add a pinch of sugar and a longer simmer, which mellows them considerably.
Swiss chard
different taste and texture
Large tender leaves with thick edible stems, in the beet family rather than the cabbage family.
- Best for
- quick sauteed greens, soups, when you are short on time
Cooks in a fraction of the time and comes out silky rather than substantial, with an earthy, faintly beet-like flavour instead of a cabbagey one. Excellent as a quick green side, wrong for a 45-minute braise - it will disintegrate into the pot liquor. Slice the stems and start them a few minutes ahead of the leaves.
Savoy cabbage
similar taste and texture
Crinkled dark-green cabbage with a loose, leafy structure.
- Best for
- gomen, long-simmered greens, greens with plenty of fat
Underrated here. The leaves are dark and sturdy enough to survive slow cooking and the crinkles hold sauce well. Flavour is sweeter and rounder than collards with no bitter edge at all, which makes for a gentler dish - useful if you are cooking for people who find greens too strong, less good if that bitterness was the point.
Spinach (last resort)
different taste and texture
Tender fast-cooking leaves with no structural strength once heated.
- Best for
- emergencies, quick greens where texture does not matter
Be realistic about this one. Spinach collapses to about a fifth of its volume in two minutes, releases a lot of water into the pan, and tastes soft and faintly metallic-sweet rather than firm and mineral. It cannot do a braise or a pot of greens, and in gomen it turns to slush. Use it only when nothing else is available, buy extra, and add it at the very end.
Questions
5 questionsAre collard greens and kale the same thing?
They are different cultivars of the same species, Brassica oleracea, which is why they substitute for each other so cleanly. Collard leaves are broader, flatter and thicker, and take longer to cook; kale is more mineral-tasting and softens faster. Lacinato kale is the variety closest to collards in both look and behaviour.
Is spring greens the same as collard greens?
Effectively yes. What British shops sell as spring greens is a loose-leafed, non-heading cabbage very close to American collards, and it is the standard substitution in either direction. Cooking times are near enough identical, though spring greens are usually picked younger and can be a little more tender.
What is gomen and can I make it without collards?
Gomen, or ye'abesha gomen, is the Ethiopian braised greens dish: greens cooked down slowly with onion, garlic, ginger, sometimes green chilli and often niter kibbeh. Collards are the usual leaf but kale, spring greens, savoy cabbage or plain green cabbage all make a very good gomen. Avoid spinach, which turns to slush.
Can I use frozen collard greens?
Yes, and for long-braised dishes they are genuinely fine - the freezing has already broken the leaves down, so they need much less cooking, often 15 to 20 minutes rather than 45. Do not thaw and squeeze them first for a braise; add them straight to the pot. They are less good for anything where you want distinct leaf texture.
Can I skip the greens altogether?
In a dish where greens are the main event - a pot of southern greens, gomen - no, you need some kind of leaf. In a soup or a stew where they are one component among many, you can leave them out or swap in cabbage, chard or even shredded Brussels sprouts without any harm to the recipe.
Tips for substituting collard greens
6 tips- Collard greens are doing two things in a dish: providing sturdy bulk that survives long cooking, and adding a mild cabbagey bitterness with a mineral edge. If your substitute is more delicate than collards, cut the cooking time hard; if it is sweeter, add acid or pepper to make up the difference.
- Strip the thick central rib out of every leaf before cooking - it stays woody long after the leaf is tender. Stack the trimmed leaves, roll them into a cigar and slice across into ribbons; about half-inch ribbons for gomen, wider for southern-style greens.
- Fat and time are what make greens taste good, not high heat. A long, low simmer with niter kibbeh, olive oil, bacon fat or smoked turkey turns the bitterness sweet. Fast-fried greens over high heat stay tough and taste sharp.
- Do not throw away the cooking liquid. In southern cooking that pot likker is a large part of the appeal and is served alongside; in gomen you cook the greens until the liquid has almost gone so the flavour stays in the leaves.
- Salt early so the leaves collapse properly, and finish with a splash of vinegar or lemon. That final acid is what stops a pot of long-cooked greens tasting flat and heavy.
- For Ethiopian gomen, the aromatics matter more than the exact leaf: onion cooked down slowly, garlic, ginger, a little green chilli and spiced butter. Any of the sturdy substitutes above will taste right in that context.