What the heck are Hoppin' John you ask? It is a traditional rice and beans dish from the southern United States. Eating Hoppin' John on New Years day is a said to bring luck and prosperity for the entire year! The tradition actually goes back to the middle ages where people in France and Spain would eat beans on New Years Day for good luck. Enough of the history lesson though, enjoy this recipe!
What you need:
2½ cups black-eyed peas
4 tablespoons butter (peanut oil works but butter is definitely better!)
2 ham hocks (Don’t know what ham hocks are? No problem look here!)
2 onions, diced
8 cups water
1 teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon garlic
2 bay leaf
salt and pepper, to taste
This first part is really important, soak the peas overnight in enough water to have them half covered, then in the morning drain em’, rinse em’, and start part 2!
Brown the ham hocks over medium heat in the butter or oil in a large stock pot. Don’t be lazy, make sure to brown those hocks on both sides! Then add the onions and sauté until tender. In my calculations and past experiences this will take around 5 to 8 minutes.
Throw in the remaining ingredients(soaked black-eyed peas, water, crushed red pepper, garlic, 2 bay leaves, and black pepper). Now rev up that heat to bring it all to a boil, then bring it back down to a cool simmer and let it cook for sometime around 60 to 90 minutes or until your peas are tender. Toss in some final salt and pepper to taste, then serve over buttered white rice.
This should feed around 6 to 8 hungry mouths. Let me know what you think!
Cheers! Chef Mike
