Collard Dolmas with Wood Duck Dirty Rice
A flavorful, Southern combination of fresh collards, wood duck hearts and livers, dirty rice, and sweet and spicy pepper jelly
As with many of the recipes I develop, this one was born out of a need to feed a crowd—and the accompanying desire to share wild game with said crowd. Wood ducks find themselves filling that space in my wild game cooking more often than not. The limit of three means that I never have more than a few on hand, so they end up in recipes like gumbo or dolmas where I can use rice and creativity to stretch what I’ve got.
I decided to call this recipe dolmas because that’s what they look like. But it’d be an affront to my wife’s paternal Polish heritage to not mention that they’re as much golabki as they are dolmas. Like most foods that present outwardly as southern, they’re somewhere on the spectrum of fusion cuisine.
Collards In North Carolina Culture
In my extended family, collards are a thing. We all love collards, and we all have varying opinions on what constitutes a good pot of collards.
I remember my parents excitedly stopping the family minivan on some rural North Carolina road to knock on a man’s door. They asked if we could buy a few heads of the collards growing in his yard; they looked that good. I scarcely remember an extended family gathering without greens on the table. We eat collard greens every New Year’s Day because how else would we get money in the new year?
I’m not exactly sure what the generation before mine experienced. But based on how they approached the issue with us, I’d have to guess that they were served collards early and often, and publicly shamed for any attempted refusal of the sacred green. Not liking them simply wasn’t an option.
Collards Coincide With Bird Seasons
In recent years, I’ve started growing collards in my raised beds during the fall and winter seasons. I have been delighted with the results. Like most other vegetables, heirloom varieties grown at home are lightyears better than anything at the grocery store. Since they’re in season alongside the best bird hunting of the year, I’ve got a few wild game recipes that I use them in. But wood duck dolmas is the one that gets requested by friends and family over and over again.
This dish falls into the category of “some assembly required,” but the final product is more than worth the trouble. The nice thing about using collards here is that you don’t have to be particularly gentle when you’re rolling. The thick leaves are forgiving to work with while you find your groove. Also, make sure to taste your dirty rice mixture ahead of assembly and adjust seasoning as needed. It’s almost impossible to add seasoning once they’re rolled and in the pan.
Wood Duck Dolmas
Ingredients
- 32 collard leaves stem on
- ½ lb spicy breakfast sausage such as Neese's
- 3 wood duck hearts and livers rinsed and finely chopped
- ½ cup yellow onion finely chopped
- ½ cup green bell pepper finely chopped
- ½ cup celery finely chopped
- 1 cup cooked white rice
- 1 tbsp Cajun seasoning
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp Tabasco sauce
- 1 cup barbecue sauce Recommend George’s or Scott’s brand barbecue sauces
Instructions
- Fill a large stockpot halfway with water and bring to a boil.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a saucepan, cook the white rice according to package instructions. Place cooked rice into a large mixing bowl and set aside.
- Working in batches of two or three at a time, blanch the collard leaves for 1 minute in the boiling water. Then, lay them flat on a clean countertop to cool. Hold the leaves by the stem as you blanch them to avoid tearing them with tongs.
- In a large saute pan, brown the sausage until the fat renders. Add in the onions, bell pepper, celery, hearts, and livers and cook until the vegetables are translucent.
- Add the cajun seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, and cooked rice to the pan. Stir until well combined and return the mixture to the mixing bowl. Set aside on the counter to cool.
- Remove the stems from the collard leaves by making cuts on either side of the stem from top to bottom.
- Place a spoonful of mixture (don’t overstuff!) into the top ⅓ of a collard leaf. Roll the leaf over once, fold the sides in, and finish tightly rolling the leaf from top to bottom. Place the finished dolma in a 9×13 baking dish and continue until all the collard leaves have been rolled.
- Pour one cup of NC-style vinegar barbecue sauce over the dolmas, cover the baking dish with foil, and place into the oven for 30 minutes. The sauce needs to be a thin, vinegar-based sauce. If these aren't available, substitute a 60/40 mixture of chicken stock and apple cider vinegar.
- Serve with pepper jelly or another thick, sweet sauce for dipping.
Nutrition