Southern Black Eyed Peas Recipe
Southern Black-Eyed Peas, or Hoppin’ John, is a hearty, soul-warming delicacy. This black-eyed peas recipe is smokey, spicy, and pure satisfaction with a deep yet not overwhelming bacon flavor. And it’s a traditional Southern dish served on New Year’s Day to bring good luck!
I love anything with beans! Perhaps it started back in grade school when my Auntie cooked beans for dinner in its modest rusticity – onions, salt, and oil, nothing fancy. That simple recipe made all my troubles go away like magic.
And now, this Southern black-eyed peas recipe is the perfect comfort food with soul-satisfying goodness any time of year. It warms us up even in the coldest weather and graces the best cookouts in the heat of summer. This dish will remind you of home and nostalgic, happy memories. ❤️
Black-Eyed Peas for More Than New Year’s Good Luck
Black-eyed peas are from my native Africa, and they’re so delicious they became popular worldwide. After arriving in the southern U.S. in the 17th century, they became a symbol of prosperity because they resemble pennies and coins. They grow exceptionally well in the heat and so gave birth to a delicious Southern tradition.
People believe eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day brings good luck and a slew of other beautiful things. But that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy this heartwarming dish all year round.
Recipe Ingredients
- Black-Eyed Peas offer a slightly smoky flavor and high protein and fiber content, making them nutritious and delicious.
- Meat – Bacon and smoked sausage add flavor and more meaty goodness. Ham hock or leftover smoked turkey are also excellent additions.
- Seasonings – Caramelized onion, garlic, thyme, celery, bay leaf, jalapenos, Creole seasoning, salt, and pepper deliver fantastic smells and flavors. You can kick up the heat more with a dash of cayenne pepper.
- Chicken Broth is the essential liquid bursting with chicken essence and rich umami flavors to simmer the black-eyed peas.
- Collard Greens – Black-eyed beans symbolize pennies. Collard greens, on the other hand, represent bills in this lucky dish. Plus, adding greens makes it more nourishing.
How to Make Southern Black-Eyed Peas
Prep
- Soak – Rinse dry black-eyed pea beans and pick through and discard any foreign object. Add beans to a large pot, covering them with 3-4 inches of cold water. Let sit for 2-3 hours or overnight.
- Cook the Meat – In a large, heavy sauté pan, fry the chopped bacon until brown and crispy (4-5 minutes). Add sausage and saute for another 2-3 minutes. Remove the bacon and sausage mixture and set aside. (Photo 1)
- Saute – Add the onions, celery, garlic, jalapenos, thyme, and bay leaf, and saute for 5 minutes or so until the onions become translucent and the seasonings release their fragrance. (Photos 2-3)
Cook
- Add Liquid – Then pour in the chicken broth or water. (Photo 4)
- Season – Drain the soaked beans, rinse, and place the beans in the pot—season with Creole seasoning and salt to taste. Mix and bring to a boil.
- Simmer – Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 20 minutes. (Photos 5-7)
- Assemble– Toss in the collard greens, bacon, and sausage into the pot, and continue cooking for another 10 minutes or more, stirring occasionally, or until beans are tender and slightly thickened to your desire. (Photo 8)
- Final Touch – Add more stock or water if the mixture becomes dry and thick. The texture of the beans should be thick and somewhat creamy but not watery. Remove the bay leaves.
- Serve – Taste and adjust for seasonings with pepper, Creole seasoning, and salt if needed. Serve over cooked rice and garnish with green onion.
Flavor Variations
- Vegan – Omit the meat and replace the rendered fat with olive oil; then vegetable broth can replace the chicken broth for a vegan version. And to make this dish more nutritious, you can add collard greens, carrots, and bell peppers.
- Crockpot Southern Black-Eyed Peas – This one is more effortless but equally delicious. Put everything in the crockpot, and you’ll have your dinner ready in 5-6 hours on high and about 9-10 hours on low. Imagine the things you can accomplish in those waiting hours. 😉
- Tropical Twist – Make these black-eyed peas with bacon and pork creamy and interestingly yummy with coconut milk. And I bet you’ll love this dish even more.
- Tomato – Fresh tomatoes or tomato sauce will also add a nice variation to this Hoppin John recipe. The kick of tangy goodness will surely make your tastebuds happy.
Recipe Notes
- You can substitute the dried black-eyed peas with canned ones. However, add them 10 minutes before the dish finishes cooking so they have time to heat through because they’re already cooked.
- For a thicker consistency, I suggest mashing a few softened beans against the side of the pot with the back of your spoon. The mashed beans will make a creamier and thicker broth. Or remove about a cup, puree them in a blender or food processor, and then pour the puree back into the pot and give it a good stir.
Making-Ahead and Storage
Surprisingly, this bean stew freezes well. So go for it and make a large batch. It’ll come in handy when a soul-food craving hits.❤️ Transfer the black-eyed peas stew into a clean, airtight container or heavy-duty freezer-safe ziplock bags once cooled.
Refrigerate for 3-5 days or freeze for 6 months. Pack them in a freezer bag, either the whole thing or in single-serving sizes, for easy thawing and reheating. Thaw overnight in the fridge when ready to serve. Reheat in a pan on medium-low heat or in a microwave. You may add more chicken broth or water as needed.
FAQs
Technically, you don’t need to soak black-eyed peas. However, soaking them for a few hours or overnight shortens the cooking time. It’s totally up to you.
Adding bacon, sausage, and seasonings intensifies this dish’s flavor. But to take this dish to another level, add tomato sauce or coconut milk.
As a tradition, Southerners put clean pennies and dimes into their pot of black-eyed peas, believing they’ll bring luck and prosperity. They believe the one who gets the most coins in their bowl is the luckiest.
What to Serve With Black-Eyed Peas on New Year’s Day
Double your luck by serving this black-eyed peas recipe with collard greens (representing money) and cornbread (for gold). Pork (because it roots forward) will complete a traditional New Year’s dinner. No lobster or chicken if you’re going for good luck. Oven-baked pork chops, smoked bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin, or fried pork chops are all good.
More Traditional Southern Dishes to Try
- Southern Mac and Cheese
- Butter Biscuits
- Southern Fried Cabbage
- New Orleans BBQ Shrimp
- Southern Deviled Eggs
Watch How to Make It
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”8AgprXDl” upload-date=”2019-04-01T07:08:53.000Z” name=”Black Eyed Peas Recipe” description=”Southern Black Eyed Peas Recipe or Hoppin’ John is a hearty, warm and soulful food. This black eyed peas recipe is smokey, spicy with a deep yet not too overwhelming bacon flavor. A Southern traditional dish served on New Year’s Day to bring good luck charm!”]
This blog post was originally published in December 2017 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video
Southern Black-Eyed Peas Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound (453g) black-eyed peas
- 4-5 thick slices bacon, chopped
- 5 ounces smoked sausage or turkey, diced (about 1 cup)
- 1 large onion, diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 2-3 teaspoons garlic, minced
- 1 optional jalapeno, minced (can replace with ¼ teaspoon cayenne)
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1-2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
- 7-8 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups (or more) collard greens (or you can use kale)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Rinse dry black-eyed pea beans, pick through, and discard any foreign objects. Add beans to a large pot and cover with 3-4 inches of cold water. Let sit for 2-3 hours (or overnight).
- In a large, heavy sauté pan, saute chopped bacon until brown and crispy (4-5 minutes), then add sausage and saute for 2-3 more minutes. Remove bacon and sausage mixture, and set aside.
- Throw in the onions, celery, garlic, jalapenos, thyme, and bay leaf, and saute for 3-5 minutes until the onions are wilted and aromatic.
- Then pour in the chicken broth or water.
- Drain the soaked beans, rinse, and place them in the pot. Season with Creole seasoning and salt to taste. Stir and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for about 20 minutes.
- Toss the collard greens, bacon, and sausage into the pot, and continue cooking for another 10 minutes or more, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender and the broth thickens to your desired texture.
- Add more stock or water if the mixture becomes dry and thick. The texture of the beans should be thick and somewhat creamy but not watery.
- Remove the bay leaf.
- Taste and adjust seasonings with salt, pepper, and Creole seasoning if needed. Serve over rice and garnish with chopped green onion.
Tips & Notes:
- Many readers have commented that it takes 1½ hours to cook tender. So please keep that in mind. A pressure cooker will speed things up.
- Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
I made this x3 for the big New Year’s Day party we throw every year, and it was a huge hit! Best black eyed peas I’ve ever made, by far! Will be using this recipe for years to come, thank you! I used Tony C.’s “spice & herbs” seasoning, cayenne instead of jalapeño, and cooked them for around 1.5 hours. Seved with “slang jane”, which I was told is an East Texas thing–a relish of tomato, bell pepper, cucumber, onion & garlic in vinegar and the liquid from a jar of hot banana peppers–atop the pease. And my mom’s cornbread, of course!
Wonderful!!! And thanks for sharing your sides and tweaks.
SO good, helped us ring in the New Year right! I’m definitely not waiting for 2027 to make this again. THANK YOU!!
I have never like black eyed peas. This recipe was delicious!
I grew up with a family that made all the traditional good luck foods for new years. As an adult, I never once did, until this year. Glad to have found this recipe, will be making this more than once per year.
I made this recipe New Years Day 2026, my family mentioned several times how good this dish was. This recipe is definitely a keeper. So flavorful. Thank you for sharing
First time in 30 years my family has had black-eyed peas that tasted good. Way to go!
I made this yesterday & they are the best black eyed peas I have ever made! Will absolutely be my staple black eyed peas recipe from here forward. I took some advice from the comments & added 2-3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar. I also added about 3 cups of collard greens & will probably add a bit more next time. I used 7 cups of broth & will probably use 5-6 cups next time so that the beans soak up more of the flavor & will add broth as needed, if needed bc I do think more of the flavor went into the liquid than the actual beans. But my family absolutely ate this up!! Served with white rice & honey butter cornbread. My mouth is drooling just thinking about the leftovers.
I also want to commend you for your quick responses to my previously posted questions. Thank you SO much for getting back to me so promptly!
Awesome!! Thanks for sharing your tweaks.
Absolutely the best ever! I changed only one thing 2/3 tsp dried thyme as I didn’t have fresh. Happy to hear I can freeze it!
This recipe is wonderful and I love making it every New Year’s Day! Has anyone tried to freeze it? I’m trying to leave 5 stars, but the max I can leave is 3. This is 5+ stars! I love it!
Thank you!!! Yes, you can definitely freeze black eyed peas. I love making a big batch and freezing half for a quick weeknight dinner.
I had this same problem with the stars. I turned my phone and that did the trick.
I made this today after coming across the recipe, and I must say it was amazing! I used some of Emeril’s creole seasoning I already had made, and I added some crushed and diced tomatoes and a green pepper. I also used 12oz diced kielbasa to make it more of a meal. We served it over rice, and I also made cornbread. Fantastic and comforting on a cold night.
The best black eye peas I’ve ever had!
I made this for New Year’s Eve. I’ve never made this dish before and everybody loved it even my boyfriend and he doesn’t like Black Eyed Peas at all.!! this recipe was a hit
Yay!!! That makes my day.
I came across an add for Black Eyed Peas the other day & after reading about this dish, I thought, Why Not! I am a Puerto Rican/Pollack who is very used to making traditional pork & saurkrat, etc… When I told my husband I wanted to try this dish – AFTER I found this amazing recipe, he thought I was crazy… He actaully said . ” You don’t know enought folks from the south” to give me poiters.. Well….. I made this recipe to the T (used Kale since my store didnt have collard greens 🙁 & It was simply amazing- My hubby actually said “this was the best New Years Day Dinner he’s ever had” adding that the Black Eyed Peas were ” Phenomenal”! He posted on FB that ” The Black Eyed Peas were INCREDIBLE”! I’ll be adding this into rotation! Thank you SOOOOOOOO much! Happy New Year!
Awesome!!! Thanks for sharing.
Sooo good!
This was great! Made as is for New Year’s Eve party and everyone loved it.
The simmer time should be closer to an hour and thirty minutes, not thirty minutes. If you go by the recipe your black eyed peas won’t be done until you’ve finished eating everything else and put away leftovers.
Thanks for your feedback; I will note that in the recipe. Mine have always been ready in thirty minutes, but so many things can affect the cooking time.
This was awesome! I’ve never made black eyed peas before and didn’t really know what to expect but they came out really well! My husband loved them, too!
I cooked them for about 20-25 mins longer than the recipe called for because I felt like it was a bit too watery. Is it supposed to be that way? Is it recommended to do only 6 cups of broth instead of 7 cups? It started to thicken up a bit but it didn’t come out as creamy as it did in your video.
Overall, it was still very good! Thank you!
Hi Jennifer. I’m so glad you liked them. There are so many variables that can affect how much water you need. The freshness of the beans, altitude, humidity, and everyone’s stove is slightly different. You could start with 5 cups, then add more as needed. That way, you’ll know what works best for you.
How many cans of canned black-eyed peas would recommend? Also if using canned peas, should I lower the amount of broth? Thanks!
Hi Michelle, For 1 lb of dried peas, use 3–4 (15-oz) cans of black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed. Yes—reduce the broth to about 3–4 cups since canned peas are already cooked and don’t absorb as much liquid.
This is exactly what I was going to ask! LoL I used only 2 cans of black eyed peas, definitely didn’t need the normal amount of broth. I ended up scooping and draining a lot out to keep and use for rice
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for this delicious recipe. I don’t usually eat meat so I didn’t have any sausage, bacon, Yes! I added some Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, along with all the other seasonings…..Yum!
Great! Yes, this recipe is very easy to convert to plant-based. Thanks for sharing your tweaks.
When would I put the ham bone in?
Hello. When you put in the black eyed peas.
Hi! I only have canned black eye peas. What do I need to change to make this? Also, I’m assuming I can take out the bacon since I don’t eat pork.
Hi! Yes—canned black-eyed peas work great. Drain and rinse them, skip the bacon (totally fine), add peas and simmer 20–30 minutes just to let the flavors come together.