Happy New Year and welcome to 2021! I think we are all glad 2020 is behind us and are looking forward to getting back to “normal” in the new year.
Hopefully, you’ve started the new year off with the “good luck” foods; black eyed peas, cabbage, pork, and greens. Of course, this sounds more like a traditional southern “every day” meal. If you didn’t maybe you would like to try another southern favorite with most of these ingredients?! Hoppin’ John Soup
Most food historians generally agree that Hoppin’ John is an American dish with African/French/Caribbean roots and flavors. The dish goes back at least as far as 1841. When according to tradition it was sold on the streets of Charleston, SC by a crippled black man known as Hoppin’ John. This is most certainly a “low country” style boil dish.
Ingredients:
8-ounce dried black-eyed peas
2 pounds of smoked turkey wings
1/3 cup finely chopped country ham
¼ tsp dried crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
2 carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 celery rib, diced
1 large, sweet onion, diced
1 bay leaf
2 TBSP Cooking Oil
8-ounce fresh collard greens, trimmed and finely chopped
1 TBSP Hot Sauce
1 TBSP Apple Cider Vinegar
Hot Cooked Brown Rice: or white rice cooked
Cornbread served on the side or as croutons
Method
1. Bring Peas, turkey wings and 6 cups of water to a boil in a large Dutch Oven. Cover and reduce heat to medium and simmer for 45 minutes or until peas are tender, skimming any foam from the surface. Drain peas, reserve 1-1/4 cups of liquid. Remove turkey meat from bones and chop.
2. Sauté ham and next 7 ingredients in hot oil in the Dutch oven medium heat for about 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add peas, reserved liquid, turkey meat, collards, hot sauce, and 6 more cups of water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes. Stir in vinegar. Season with salt (shouldn’t need much due to the country ham) and pepper. Discard bay leaf.
3. Serve over the cooked hot rice with the cornbread or cornbread croutons.
This recipe makes 11 cups. It reheats extremely well! Or you can freeze the leftovers as this freezes well to.
Happy New Year & Bon Appetit!
- Chef Chris
