Simple Black-Eyed Peas

Did you eat your black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day? Growing up it was a family tradition I never questioned. I knew eating them was supposed to bring good luck in the new year, and Mom was selectively superstitious. So we always had them each & every year, without fail. But it also didn’t escape me that the holiday was just a convenient excuse because beans, cornbread, & greens was absolutely one of my parent’s favorite meals.

(And now the Louis Jordan song is overtaking me just for a minute. Beans & Cornbread. Beeeeans & Conebread, they go hand in haaaaaand…Ok, I’m back.)

Once I moved out into my first apartment, I recall being tickled by the prospect of making my own New Year’s peas. I didn’t want to replicate hers.
I’d soaked my peas as Emeril, or whoever I listened to back then instead of Mama, had advised. By then my 20 year old palate had discovered all sorts of new flavors that languished in the back of Mom’s cupboards. Bay Leaves! Red Pepper Flakes! Cumin! Garlic! Thyme! I was spicin’ it up, damnit! Bucking tradition! Bringin’ da Funk & da FLAVA!!

Well, that first batch wasn’t…inedible. But it wasn’t good either.
The result was a murky melange of over-flavored mush which lacked subtlety and depth. And it definitely wasn’t something that I could count on to inspire luck & riches in the new year.

So I sheepishly dropped by my parents house, tail between legs, knowing her eyes would light up as they always did whenever our conversations turned to food. This time she stifled a little chuckle. Her eyes clearly said, “I told you so, or at least I would’ve had you asked” But she didn’t say it aloud. Graciously, all she said was,

“Simplicity is the key to good black-eyed peas. You don’t have to soak them overnight, or at all. No need to throw in your entire spice rack.

Peas, smoked pork, water, and a touch of salt. Try it and call me later.”

So I did. And she was right, of course.

My only change to her recipe was to use smoked turkey wing instead of pork hocks and whatnot.

These slow cooker black-eyed peas are delightfully smokey yet still retain some of their texture. I like a kick so I add scallion, fresh jalapeno &/or hot sauce to the finished bowl, not the cooking liquid. As far as the hot sauce goes, I love me some Tapatio.

No need to mess with the traditional accompaniments, greens and cornbread. These days I eat very little in the way of grains, so my homemade cornbread is a rare treat, indeed. I make ’em in individual muffins so as not to over-indulge–no sugar & a lil’ Kerrygold instead of the giant cast iron skillet of bacon-greased, butter-drenched, sweet cornbread of my youth. The greens are a combo of collard & turnip with potlicker for days.

I could barely wait until the pictures were taken to dig into this perfect bowl.

Happy New Year! This is gonna be fun.

Simple Black-Eyed Peas

Simplest recipe ever for slow cooker black-eyed peas

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 5 hours hrs

Total Time 5 hours hrs 5 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups dried black-eyed peas
• 1 smoked turkey wing
• 3 cups water
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

 

• Rinse and sort peas carefully.  Add to slow cooker with smoked turkey wing and water.  Set cooker to low.  Cook for 3 hours.  Check your fluid level, taste peas & adjust remaining cook time accordingly.  Mine were done to my liking around 5 hours in.  I left them on warm for another 30 minutes or so as I prepped sides.

Notes

Add any sort of smoked meat & cut you prefer. This is not the type of slow cooker recipe I would just leave going unattended all day. Tasting and flexibility are key. If your meat is less salty, you might not need to add as much salt.
Add your favorite condiments & grub it out!