Black Eyed Peas

As the New Year approaches, my mind wanders back to many New Year’s meals with my parents. It always had black eyed peas, collards, and cornbread.

All have meanings for good luck, prosperity, and health. Given the events of 2020, “All Y’all better eat your peas..”

I have a post for the cornbread, and will add a post for the collards, usually this was served with a drizzle of vinegar / pepper sauce.

From Wikipedia:

In the Southern United States, eating black-eyed peas or Hoppin’ John (a traditional soul food) on New Year’s Day is thought to bring prosperity in the new year.

The peas are typically cooked with a pork product for flavoring (such as bacon, fatback, ham bones, or hog jowls) and diced onion, and served with a hot chili sauce or a pepper-flavored vinegar. The traditional meal also includes Cabbage, collard, turnip, or mustard greens, and ham.

The peas, since they swell when cooked, symbolize prosperity; the greens symbolize money; the pork, because pigs root forward when foraging, represents positive motion. Cornbread, which represents gold, also often accompanies this meal.

Black Eyed Peas for New Years

An old Southern Tradition, Peas and Collards for luck

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Soak Time 12 hours hrs

Servings: 4 people

Course: Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine: Southern

Calories: 452

Ingredients Equipment Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

• 4 slices Bacon Thick Cut
• 4 cups Black Eyed Peas Picked, Washed, Soaked
• 1 ea Onion Peeled Diced
• 4 ribs Celery Washed, diced
• 1 ea Green Bell Pepper Washed, cored, diced
• 3 cloves Garlic Peeled, minced
• 1 tbsp Fresh Thyme Washed Chopped
• 1/2 tsp Cayenne
• 1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
• 4 cups Chicken Stock Low Sodium (to cover)

Equipment

• Dutch Oven

Method

 

1. Fry off the bacon in the dutch oven, medium high, ~10 minutes, remove / reserve
2. Add trinity (onion, celery, bell pepper) and cook until onions are soft and translucent
3. Add thyme, garlic black pepper, cayenne, stir until fragrant ~ 1 minute
4. Add peas and stock to cover, bring to a boil, thence reduce heat to medium low and simmer until peas are tender.
5. Serve over rice or cornbread.

Nutrition

Calories: 452kcalCarbohydrates: 47gProtein: 23gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 22mgSodium: 1401mgPotassium: 897mgFiber: 12gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 393IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 76mgIron: 5mg

Notes

One can replace the bacon with leftover ham, using olive oil to sautee the trinity.

Trinity, – From Wikipeida:

The holy trinity in Cajun cuisine and Louisiana Creole cuisine is the base for several dishes in the regional cuisines of Louisiana and consists of onions, bell peppers and celery. The preparation of Cajun/Creole dishes such as crawfish étouffée, gumbo, and jambalaya all start from this base.

Variants use garlic, parsley, or shallots in addition to the three trinity ingredients. The addition of garlic to the holy trinity is sometimes referred to as adding “the pope.”

The holy trinity is the Cajun and Louisiana Creole variant of mirepoix; traditional mirepoix is two parts onions, one part carrots, and one part celery, whereas the holy trinity is typically equal measures of the three ingredients or one part onions, one part green bell pepper, and one part celery.

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