Growing up in Texas, I recall eating black-eyed peas and keeping a penny in my pocket on New Year's Day. Both were supposed to bring a prosperous year. It so happens that the Southern dish Hoppin' John is the perfect dish for watching College Football Bowl Games too!
Leave three black-eyed peas in your bowl to bring about luck, fortune, and romance. Eat it with cornbread (the color of gold) and/or collard greens (the color of paper money) to further increase your abundance.
Hoppin' John
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 cup ham, diced
- 2 cans black-eyed peas, slightly drained
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3 cups hot cooked brown rice
- Salt to taste
In a large saucepan over medium heat, sauté onion in a small amount of oil (use leftover bacon grease to be truly Southern). Add ham, black-eyed peas, and cayenne pepper; simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in rice and salt and cook till heated through. Serve immediately.