Hoppin’ John is our traditional New Year’s Day meal. They say black eyed peas bring good luck, and that collard greens bring money, but our grocery store was out of collard greens so I guess we’ll see what mustard greens bring!
If you start from dried peas, which you should because they are way cheaper than canned, soak your peas overnight then cook in crockpot on low for however many hours it takes to get them nice and tender (say, 6-8 hours).
Stuff You Need:
- Bacon (1/4 – 1 lb, depending how much you like bacon), chopped small
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small bunch of greens (collard for money, mustard greens for… TBD), chopped
- 4 cups cooked black eyed peas
- Red chile flakes, salt, pepper
- 1.5 cups long grain rice of your choosing (white, wild, brown). If using brown or wild rice, add a cup or so more water.
How To Do It:
- Follow rice package directions to cook rice in a large saucepan.
- While rice is going, sautee chopped bacon for a while, then add onion and garlic and sautee over medium until onion is translucent. Add greens and sautee until wilted then remove from heat.
- When rice is done, add peas and onion-bacon-garlic mixture and stir it all up.
- Add red chile flake, salt, pepper to taste.
What to Serve With It (some or all):
- Chow chow
- Cornbread
- Flour tortillas
- Pepperoncinis
- Cowboy Candy
Fiscal Fasters 