It's Hoppin' John time in the deep South, lucky peas twinned with collards the color of money and bits of ham--the meat of an animal that only roots forward, another omen of good luck. I made my first Hoppin' John for a vegetarian potluck and it disappeared so fast with so much lip-smacking, I never changed the recipe. You can of course serve it with ham--inside or by its side. Here's the recipe I post annually.
Hoppin' John
For 6-8
½ lb. black-eyed peas, soaked overnight and drained
2-3 tbsp corn oil, enough to cover the bottom of your pot
1 lg onion, peeled and diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 sm Poblano pepper, roasted and diced
1 tsp chipotle chili powder
1 tsp chipotle chili powder
½ tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp ground cayenne
2 celery ribs, diced
4 cups vegetable broth
½-1 cup water
½ bunch collard greens, chopped
1-1½ cups rice (depending on how thick you want this)*
Salt and black pepper to your taste
*I find using short-grained paella rice better than long grain basmati for this dish.
Heat oil in a heavy gauge casserole or stock pot. Add onion
and sauté over medium heat until onion is soft and translucent, maybe 5
minutes.
Add garlic and Poblano pepper, stirring to blend. Sauté 1 minute.
Add spices and celery. Sauté 2 minutes. (Add oil if
necessary)
Add broth, water and black-eyed peas. Bring to a boil, lower
heat to simmer, cover and cook 45 minutes.
Add collard greens, rice, salt and pepper. Cover and
continue to simmer another 20-25 minutes, checking from time to time that you
have enough liquid. Add water by the ¼ cupful if you need it.
Taste for seasoning, adjust if necessary, and serve with
freshly chopped cilantro leaves.
If you prefer kale to collards, here are two recipes slightly different from each other for sausage, black-eyed peas and kale. One also has potatoes and lentils in the mix.
Black-eyed Peas with Sausage and Kale
Serves 4
¼ cup olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 lg garlic clove, minced
1 med/lg carrot, peeled and diced
1 celery rib, cleaned and diced
1 c tomatoes, chopped with their juice (canned or boxed is okay)
1 lb linguica or luganega or bratwurst, or other sweet sausage
1 cup dried black-eyed peas, soaked in boiling water for at least 1 hour
4 kale leaves, stems removed and leaves chopped
Salt and pepper to your taste
2 tbsp freshly chopped flat leaf parsley
Heat olive oil in a cast iron or enameled iron casserole. Add onion and sauté over medium low heat until onion is soft and golden. Add garlic and sauté 60 seconds. Add carrots and celery, blend well and cook about 5 minutes until soft. Add the tomatoes with all their juice, lower heat to simmer and cook very slowly for 15 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350º. Puncture the sausage skins with a fork in several places. Then slice the sausages into 1” pieces. Add to the pot and simmer for 10-12 minutes. Drain and rinse the black-eyed peas. Add to the pot and blend. Add the chopped kale and blend. Add 2 cups liquid (broth and water or all water) to cover everything. Cover and bring to a steady simmer on the top of the stove. Then put in the center of the oven and cook at 350º for 90 minutes or until the black-eyed peas are tender. Check from time to time to be sure there is enough liquid. Add ¼ cup of warm water at a time if needed.
If there is fat from the sausages on top, tip the pot over the sink to remove it. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as you like it. Stir in the chopped parsley to serve. This can be made ahead and reheated in the oven at 250º or on top of the stove on simmer.
Black-eyed Peas with Sausage, Kale, Potatoes and Lentils: a thick soup
serves 6-8
¼ c olive oil
2 yellow onions, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp dried thyme
½ tsp smoked Spanish paprika
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried sage
¼ tsp crushed chili peppers
1 lb Kielbasa or mildly hot Italian sausage, sliced into ¼” disks*
15 oz (1 can) chopped tomatoes and juice
1 bunch Lacinto/Tuscan Kale, stems removed, greens cut into bite-sized pieces
4 c chicken or vegetable broth
3 c water
1 cup brown lentils
1 lb Yukon gold potatoes, cut into cubes
1 14 oz can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 tsp sea salt
2 tsp sherry vinegar (don’t worry if you don’t have any)
* If you are vegetarian, substitute 1 lb firm tofu, cut into cubes and fried in olive oil with a pinch of fennel or anise seed until brown and crisp. Use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
Palestinian black-eyed peas and chard
Serves 4
For the beans
1 leek
1 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves
¼ tsp chilli powder or chopped dried chilli
2 cans black-eyed peas
1 cube vegetable soup powder
pinch of ground nutmeg
½ unwaxed lemon
½ lb bunch Swiss or rainbow chard
For the herb smash
;g bunch fresh cilantro
2 green chilis
2 garlic cloves
¼ c shelled walnuts
1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
2 tbsp good quality olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon
Fill and boil a kettle and get all your ingredients together. Put
a large saucepan on the stove.
Wash and finely slice the leek. Add to the saucepan with a
tablespoon of olive oil and cook for a couple of minutes until soft and sweet.
Finely slice the garlic and add with the chili powder or dried chili and cook 2-3
minutes, until the garlic begins to brown. Add black-eyed peas with their
liquid, the cube or powdered soup and 1 c boiling water from the kettle. Bring
to a simmer. Add nutmeg, squeeze in the juice of half the lemon, add the
squeezed lemon half to the pan and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, strip the
leaves from the chard stalks. Finely slice the stalks and add them to the pan,
then finely shred the leaves and put to one side.
Put all the ingredients for the herb smash into a food processor
and blitz until you have a smooth grassy paste. Season well with salt and
pepper. Once the peas are soft and the liquid has reduced to a thick
soup-like consistency, stir in the chard leaves, season well with salt and
pepper and cook for 2-3 minutes. Scoop into deep bowls and spoon over the herb
smash.
Punjabi-style black-eyed peas
serves 6
You can prepare this rich and pungent dhal rather quickly by using canned pre-cooked black-eyed peas instead of dried ones, so here is the recipe both ways.
Faster modern times way
2 15 oz. cans of cooked black-eyed peas
5 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
21/2 -3” piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced
4 tbsp olive or canola oil
1 tbsp butter or ghee
1 lg red onion, peeled and finely diced
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander 1 tsp chili powder
2 cups chopped tomatoes with juice (boxed is fine)
1/3 cup plain yogurt, thicker is better, at room temperature
1/8 tsp salt
¼ tsp smoked paprika, optional but a nice touch
½ bunch fresh cilantro, leaves only, washed and chopped
Heat the oil and butter or ghee in a large heavy gauge saucepan or medium casserole over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 3-5 minutes to soften. Mix in the cumin, coriander, chili and tomato. Lower to medium-low heat and continue to sauté another 2-3 minutes until the sauce is very warm. Slowly stir in the yogurt (yogurt that is too cold in a sauce that is too hot can come apart) and blend the pot contents into a smooth sauce. Continue to heat for another 2 minutes. Add the black-eyed peas and salt. If there is not enough sauce to cover the beans, add ½ cup water or vegetable broth and blend in. Continue to simmer about 10-12 minutes, whatever it takes to get everything nice and hot without drying out the sauce. Test and adjust salt to your taste. Pour into a large serving bowl and garnish with the chopped cilantro.
Slower, Traditional Way
1 ½ cups dried black-eyed peas, soaked overnight and drained
6-7 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
3 1/2” piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced
4 tbsp olive, canola or mustard oil
2 tbsp ghee or butter
1 lg red onion, peeled and minced
3 tsp ground cumin
1 ½ tsp ground coriander
2 med. tomatoes chopped
1/3 cup thick yogurt at room temperature
1 tsp chili powder
¼ tsp salt
½ bunch fresh cilantro, leaves only, washed and chopped
Put the beans in a medium sized pot with 5 cups of water and 1/8 tsp salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook 3 minutes. Remove from heat. In another medium sized pot, heat the oil and ghee or butter over medium heat. Add onion and stir-fry 3-5 minutes until slightly browned. Stir in the ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander and chili. Continue to cook over medium heat 30 seconds. Add the chopped tomatoes and stir-fry until the tomatoes are soft. Lower heat and continue to stir for another minute. Slowly stir in the yogurt and blend into a smooth sauce. Continue to cook another 2-3 minutes. Pour in the black-eyed peas and their cooking water. Add 1/8 tsp salt and blend all ingredients well. Cover and simmer until the black-eyed peas are tender, 40-50 minutes.
and finally, a hint for out of the ordinary hummus:
Black-eyed pea and chickpea hummus with capers
1 can black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 lg garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 c fresh cilantro leaves
juice of 1 large lemon and pinch of zest
salt and black pepper to your taste
1 c good quality olive oil, in increments
1 tbsp capers, drained
combine everything but the olive oil and capers in the bowl of a food processor or blender and start to whiz. Continue to process while pouring the olive oil in a thin stream until you have the consistency you desire. Remove to a serving bowl and stir in the capers.
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