Hoppin' John

Contributed by

ADAM BERKELMANS

The Story

A good luck dish to start 2021 off right, after the train wreck that was 2020!

If ever we needed some luck in the new year, this is the year! Though I’m not a superstitious person, I’ll take all the help I can get to get 2021 started on the right foot, so I made my take on H...

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Hoppin' John

This simple dish of black eyed peas, rice, and pork is eaten for good luck every New Years Day in the American South. This is my take on Hoppin' John and not necessarily the traditional recipe for it.
Servings 4
Prep Time 1 hr 30 mins
Cook Time 1 hr 30 mins

Ingredients

Hoppin' John

  • 1 cup dried black eyed peas
  • 2 onions, one halved and one sliced
  • 1/2 tbs kosher salt
  • 1 cup white rice, uncooked
  • 1 thick cut, pork loin chop
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 green onion, sliced on the bias

Old Fashioned Cornbread

  • 1 3/4 cup yellow corn grits or stone-ground cornmeal
  • 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 cup buttermilk, OR 2% milk with 2 tbs lemon juice
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 tbs melted pork lard, OR melted butter, OR vegetable oil

Instructions

  • Cover dried black eyed peas with water, add the halved onion and salt and bring to a simmer. Cook for about an hour, or until they are tender, but not bursting.
  • Meanwhile, cook the rice as per package instructions.
  • Generously salt and pepper the pork chop and sear it on medium high in a cast iron pan. Turn it regularly and cook until the centre reads 140°F (60°C) and the outside has become golden brown. Once done, let the chop rest for about 5 minutes.
  • While the chop is resting, fry the sliced onion in the pork fat that has rendered into the pan. Fry until the onion is golden, 5 or 6 minutes.
  • Drain the beans and add them to a large bowl. Add the rice, fried onions, any drippings left in the pan you used to fry the onions and pork, and the garlic powder.
  • Cut the cooked pork chop into cubes, then add those to the bowl as well as any juices that came out during resting. Mix everything together well.
  • Taste for seasoning, and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Enjoy!
  • FOR THE CORNBREAD: Preheat oven to 450°F with the rack towards the top of the oven. Grease up a cast iron pan and put it in the oven while it preheats.
  • In a large bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients with a fork until well combined. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, then add the buttermilk and fat/oil.
  • Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently stir it all together. This will be a batter consistency rather than a dough-like consistency. Mix only until everything has been combined, don't over mix.
  • Remove the cast iron pan from the oven (always leave a towel on the handle so you don't forget and grab the handle and burn yourself!) and pour in the batter. Give the pan a gentle shake to settle the batter into every nook and cranny, then put it back into the oven.
  • Bake for 18-25 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Let cool for 5-10 minutes, then cut into wedges and serve with butter. Enjoy!
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American

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