Here we are well into the first day of 2008. I have my black-eyed peas cooking on the stove. Yup, I remembered this year. But as I looked back at the recipe I posted this time last year, I realized I have two different recipes for Hoppin’ John. The one I’m making as I type came from an old Southern Living cook book (1981). I’m going to post the recipe as it appears in the book. But I did not use the quick-soak method the recipe suggests. I soaked the black-eyed peas the NT way, 12-24 hours with 2 tbsp whey added to the water. Without further ado:
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2 cups dried black-eyed peas
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1/2 lb ham
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2 quarts water
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1 cup uncooked regular rice (I use brown rice)
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1 cup chopped onion
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1 cup chopped celery
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2 teaspoons butter
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1/2 to 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (I used 1/2 tsp basil and 1/2 tsp oregano)
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1 teaspoon sugar
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1 teaspoon salt
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1/4 teaspoon pepper
Sort and wash peas; place in a heavy saucepan. Cover with water, and bring to a boil; cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Cover and let soak 1 hour; drain.
Combine ham and 2 quarts water in a large Dutch oven. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 minutes. Add peas; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 45 minutes. Add remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer an additional 30 minutes or until black-eyed peas are done.
Remove ham; cut into small pieces. Stir ham into pea mixture. Yield: 10 to 12 servings.
One other thing I did differently than the recipe above: I sauteed the onion and celery in the 2 tsp. butter until just tender, then added that mixture to the peas after their 45 minute simmer. I used a couple of ham shank pieces for the ham, so will have to remove the bones when everything is done. And, the brown rice will likely require 10-15 minutes longer than the 30 minutes allotted in the recipe.
Whatever it is you may eat or do this New Year’s Day, I wish you a wonderful year. Happy New Year!
