If you are wondering what to do with swiss chard, I suggest making this simple sauteed swiss chard recipe. It’s such an easy vegetable side dish that can be enjoyed for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Oh and it’s so good for you too! Swiss chard is loaded with important nutrients like Vitamins A, C, and K and minerals like magnesium, iron and potassium. Of course, the levels reduce when cooked, but it still retains enough to make it a healthy vegetable side dish.

If you enjoy simple side dishes like this, be sure to check out my recipes for stir fried bok choy, sauteed green beans and sauteed broccoli.

Sauteed swiss chard: easy vegetable side dish

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Ingredients for sauteed swiss chard

swiss chard: I got a bunch of swiss chard in the market (I think it’s the same as rainbow chard) with red, orange, yellow and white stems. Any color would work for this recipe and you can get organic bunches from Amazon too.
garlic: adds a subtle spice to the greens.
ginger: also brings in subtle flavor to the dish.
salt
oil
lemon: swiss chard (like many greens) has high levels of oxalates, which can combine with calcium in the body and possibly form kidney stones. But, lemon contains citrate which binds with the calcium instead and so reduces kidney stone formation. While I’m using lemon here, lime can also work.
honey: or sweetener of your choice (optional). Swiss chard can have a contrasting slightly sweet, earthy and bitter taste. Along with the lemon, it can skew to the bitter side, so you can use honey to balance the flavors for a delicious dish.

Equipment

You don’t need any special equipment for this recipe.

How to cook swiss chard

Prep

For prep, I started with washing, peeling and finely chopping the garlic and ginger. Then, I went on to thoroughly wash all the swiss chard leaves, removing any brown spots on the leaves and edges of the stems.

Here’s a look at everything.

washed swiss chard leaves and ingredients

Next, I separated the midrib/stems from the leaves. It’s easiest to hold the stem at a height and slide a sharp knife along it towards the tip of the leaf. Repeat for the other side of the stem.

With the stems separated, I chopped them into small quarter-inch pieces. As for the leaves, I rolled as much of them together before thinly slicing (chiffonade cuts).

Here’s a look when the prep was all done.

prepped ingredients for sauteed swiss chard

Sauté

Now, it’s time to cook the swiss chard. I placed a large saucepan on the stove on medium heat and allowed it to heat up before adding in the oil.

To the warm oil, I mixed in the garlic and ginger and stirred for about 30 seconds while they softened.

garlic and ginger for swiss chard recipe

Next, I mixed in the chopped stems and cooked them for about 3 minutes.

Finally, I added in the leaves a little at a time and stirred to combine with the garlic, ginger and chopped stems. At this point, I sprinkled in the salt and allowed everything to cook for 5 minutes.

Lastly, I squeezed the lemon and added in the lemon juice and taste tested. If it doesn’t have enough salt, adjust to your liking. And, if it is slightly bitter to your taste, mix in the sweetener (honey or maple syrup are good options).

Sauteed swiss chard recipe with lemons on the side

Remove from the heat and serve warm along with other easy vegetable side dishes. It also goes really well with stewed red beans, honey mustard salmon or baked chicken. The extras can be stored in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.

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Swiss chard recipe

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