Sauteed collard greens and bacon form a savory bed for perfectly poached eggs. It’s a delicious breakfast or brunch with just 3.8 carbs per serving. It’s beautiful served right in the iron skillet with some low carb “cheese grits” on the side.
For this recipe you’ll need: bacon, garlic, onion, collard greens,?chipotle in adobo,?salt, lime juice, chicken broth, butter, eggs, and queso fresco.
If you are in a hurry click here to go straight to the recipe for sauteed collard greens with bacon and poached eggs.

I generally try to stick with recipes for one or two people here on Lowcarb-ology. I’ve found that most people I know on low carb don’t cook for their entire family but make separate foods for themselves. Sometimes I end up with a recipe that is (what I like to call) undercover low carb. Something that is low carb without being obvious.
This recipe for sauteed collard greens and poached eggs is just that. I like to make it in a big cast iron skillet that can go from the stove to the table.
The collard greens are sauteed in bacon grease with onion, garlic, and chipotle for a little extra flavor. Once cooked you create hollows in the greens and crack your eggs right in. Add some chicken broth and cover for just a few minutes – voila! Perfectly poached eggs on tender greens. Once the eggs are done I hit them with some salt and pepper then sprinkle crumbled queso fresco over the top. If you don’t have access to queso fresco you can substitute paneer or any dry cheese curd. Cottage cheese works in a pinch. It’s not as pretty, though.
I like to leave the egg soft enough that when you cut into it the yolk flows over the greens. It’s rich and satisfying.

My family is not big on breakfast. Most of them don’t love collards in any form, as a matter of fact. So I’ve learned from experience that I can break the recipe up into servings in meal prep containers, then warm it up later. They’ll last a week and I sure don’t mind eating this every day. The downside is that the egg gets cooked more when it’s warmed up. The sauteed collards and eggs together are so good, though, that I don’t care.
Collards need to be stemmed. This isn’t hard at all. Once you’ve washed them fold the leaf in half and run a sharp knife down the edge of the thick vein in the center from the top to the bottom. The stem will come right out. Roll the leaves up and chop them into bite sized pieces. Collard greens don’t disappear when they’re cooked like spinach does. They’ll maintain some texture. Just don’t overcook them!

Kale might be all the rage right now but those of us here in the south know that collard greens are the real deal. This is my favorite way to eat them — I hope you enjoy this sauteed collard greens and poached eggs dish as much as I do.
Table of Contents
Nutrition Information for Sauteed Collards with Poached Eggs

Here’s that poached eggs on sauteed collard greens recipe.

Sauteed Collard Greens with Bacon and Poached Eggs
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 onion medium chopped
- 3 collards bunches of stemmed and chopped
- 1 tablespoon chipotle in adobo mashed to a paste
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 3 tablespoon of butter
- 6 eggs
- black pepper Freshly ground
- Queso Fresco or shredded Monterey Jack
Instructions
- Heat a large (12" or more), heavy skillet over medium high heat.
- Add the bacon and cook until crispy.
- Remove the bacon from the pan and turn the heat down to medium low.
- Crumble the bacon.
- Add the onion and garlic to the pan along with the crumbled bacon.
- Saute until the onion and garlic are starting to get tender but haven't browned.
- Add half the collard greens, the chopotle in adobo, and the salt.
- Saute until the greens wilt.
- Add the remaining collards and saut? until the collards are done but still a pretty green.
- Stir in the lime juice and chicken broth.
- Turn the heat back up and create 6 pockets in the greens for the eggs.
- Add 1/2 a tablespoon of butter to each of the 6 pockets.
- Let melt.
- Crack an egg into each pocket.
- Cover and simmer until the white is cooked but the yolk is still runny.
- Sprinkle each egg with the queso fresco and serve.
Nutrition
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