It’s a long-standing tradition that’s been passed down from generation to generation.
The folklore, which seems to have originated in the South but is a popular tradition nationwide now, says that those who eat black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day will have good luck for the 12 months ahead. Those who add some type of greens, representing money — collards, turnips or cabbage greens — to their New Year’s meal will have financial prosperity in the months to follow, too.
“It’s just a tradition. I don’t see any luck in it. Truth be told, I don’t,” said Greenwood chef Mary Hoover with a laugh. “It’s just something the generations did — from foreparents to foreparents. It just went on and on. My kids do it, and I know my grandkids will do it, too.”
Although Hoover doesn’t believe there’s much to the lore of eating black-eyed peas for luck and greens for wealth, her family does.
“The family and the generations won’t let you stop” serving the annual meal, she said. “As soon as they call in the morning, they say, ‘Good morning. Do you have your black-eyed peas and greens on?’ They won’t let you stop.”
Local award-winning cookbook author Martha Foose also partakes in the annual tradition.
“I think people really turn to traditions and superstitions at the turn of the new year,” she said.
Foose said her mother makes black-eyed pea soup for her family’s New Year’s Day lunch.
“That’s how we generally do our black-eyed peas, and then we do turnip greens, or more often we do cabbage. ... We’ll have ham and cabbage and cornbread at dinnertime.”
Foose said not having black-eyed peas and greens on New Year’s Day would “feel like the bell had been unrung. You can’t leave things to chance, and there’s a chance something can bring you luck. And now that Mississippi has the lottery, who knows?”
The black-eyed peas and greens tradition for food columnist Lee Ann Flemming began when she married her husband, Steve.
“His momma and daddy wanted all of their children and spouses at the house for New Year’s Day lunch, and they always had black-eyed peas, cornbread and turnip greens,” said Flemming.
The family gathering also followed another New Year’s custom — “what you do on New Year’s Day, you’ll do throughout the year.”
“And they always wanted to be with family,” said Flemming.
“My sister-in-law and I laugh and say we’ve done this every year, so we hate not to do it in case it is our good luck,” she said.
Now Flemming carries on the same tradition.
“I do it for my children and my mom at my house,” she said.
Flemming usually prepares her black-eyed peas with salt meat.
“I just boil them until they are done, which usually takes about an hour and a half,” she said.
Some in the Flemming family like to add condiments to their black-eyed peas.
“My husband always puts ketchup on his black-eyed peas, and I put salsa on mine, and (my husband) has a brother who puts mayonnaise on his,” said Flemming. “Those are just family toppings that we put on them.”
Foose’s tips for cooking black-eyed peas include “always start them in cold water and skim off any foam that comes off the top.”
For people who don’t eat pork, she suggests using smoked turkey necks to add flavor. The turkey necks are also usually lower in sodium, too.
Foose added, “Don’t salt the peas until they are almost done; it keeps the skins from slipping off of them, and they will be more tender.”
Hoover usually cooks dried black-eyed peas for an hour and a half in salt meat or turkey.
For fresh or frozen, Hoover said it only takes about 30 minutes to cook the black-eyed peas. She doesn’t add meat to the fresh peas. She adds diced bell pepper and onion and maybe some butter and salt to taste.
“Then you let them cook for 30 minutes, and they are ready,” she said.
Even though she talks about stopping the tradition, Hoover said she enjoys preparing a New Year’s Day meal for her family featuring black-eyed peas, collard greens, cornbread, sweet potatoes and fried chicken — all food from the earth.
“I remember a long time ago my great-grandmother told me that most of the time when the New Year’s holiday came up everybody was eating from the earth — the chicken from the yard, the beans from the garden and the greens from the garden. You made your own cornmeal back in the day. I guess it’s just earthly food.”
Hoover said she does, however, hope the New Year’s lore is true.
“I hope it brings me good luck, and I hope it brings me more money,” she said. “We just have to keep it going generation to generation.”
Here are some recipes to add good luck to the new year.
THE PAINTER'S BLACK-EYED PEA CAKES
1 slice bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
4 whole garlic cloves, plus 2 cloves, minced
1 pound fresh black-eyed peas
½ cup minced onion
½ cup finely chopped green bell pepper
½ cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
1 teaspoon finely chopped basil
½ teaspoon cayenne
1½ teaspoons salt
½ cup heavy cream
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 large egg
½ cup buttermilk
2 cups panko or fresh French bread crumbs
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
4 tablespoons olive oil
Comeback Sauce (recipe below)
In a large pot over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Add the whole garlic cloves; cook 1 minute more. Add peas and enough water to cover by 2 inches. Simmer for 30 minutes, or until tender. Drain peas; discard garlic. Transfer half the peas to a large bowl, and mash them (with a potato masher or the back of a spoon) into a chunky puree.
Add the remaining minced garlic, peas, onion, peppers, parsley, basil, cayenne, salt and cream. Mix well. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.
With damp hands, form the mixture into 12 patties, about 3/4-inch thick. Set aside.
Set up an assembly line to prep the pea cakes. Put the flour into a shallow dish. Then, grab a small bowl for the egg and buttermilk, and beat with a fork to combine. Next, put the bread crumbs into a shallow dish. Coat each cake with flour, then dip into the egg mixture, and pat the cake in bread crumbs. Coat all the cakes, and set them aside.
Set a wire rack over a baking sheet lined with paper towels.
In a skillet over medium heat, heat 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Working in batches, fry the cakes for three minutes on each side or until toasty brown. Place them on the rack to drain and cool. (If your oil gets dark, pour it out, wipe your skillet with a paper towel, and add fresh butter and oil for the remaining cakes.)
Serve the cakes with Comeback Sauce, greens and sliced tomatoes.
Comeback Sauce
1 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup salad oil
¼ cup chili sauce
¼ cup ketchup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
¼ teaspoon hot paprika
1 small onion, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
In a food processor or blender, combine all the ingredients. Process until smooth. Refrigerate for up to one week.
— This recipe is featured in Martha Foose’s cookbook “Screen Doors and Sweet Tea” and is from Chef Taylor Bowen Ricketts, who serves the popular dish at her downtown Greenwood restaurant Fan & Johnny’s.
BLACK-EYED PEAS
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups of drained black-eyed peas
Salt and pepper to taste
Wash the peas. Add about 4 cups of water into a pot, and pour in drained peas. Add the other ingredients, and let them cook for about an hour and 30 minutes.
The peas should boil until the water gets dark brown, and the peas sink to the bottom of the pot.
Turn the heat down for the last 30 minutes of cooking.
— Mary Hoover
DADDY’S FIFTH WIFE’S BLACK-EYED PEA CORNBREAD
1 pound hot sausage
1 onion, chopped
1 cup cornmeal
½ cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs, beaten
½ cup vegetable oil
1 (15-ounce) can black-eyed peas, drained
1 (8-ounce) package shredded cheddar cheese
¾ cup cream-style corn
¼ cup chopped diced jalapenos
1 (5-ounce) can diced green chilies
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray, and set aside. In a skillet, cook sausage and onion over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain fat and set aside. Mix cornmeal, flour, salt and baking soda together in a large bowl. Whisk buttermilk, eggs, and oil in a small bowl. Add cornmeal mixture, and stir just to moisten. Stir in cooked sausage mixture, peas, cheese, cream-style corn, jalapenos and green chilies into cornbread batter. Pour into prepared pan, and bake for an hour uncovered until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
— Lee Ann Flemming
HOPPIN’ JOHN
4 cups soaked black-eyed peas
4 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, diced
4 slices bacon, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
5 cups chicken broth
2 cups chopped ham
1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes
2 tablespoons white vinegar
Salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste
Soak peas in water for six hours and drain. Heat butter in large pot, and add onion, bacon, garlic, green pepper and celery; stir. Cook for about five minutes. Stir in soaked peas, chicken broth, ham, tomatoes, salt, pepper and cayenne. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in vinegar, and adjust spices. Serve over white or brown rice, or mix rice in before serving.
— Lee Ann Flemming
• Contact Ruthie Robison at 581-7235 or rrobison@gwcommonwealth.com.
