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Each year we are sure to have a bite of Black Eyed Peas the first thing in the New Year. That could be at a minute after midnight or first thing upon rising on January 1st. Not a tradition in my husband’s family, nor mine, I conjured this tradition in my own family year’s back feeling it a small price to pay for good luck in the new year and also loving to love in something new for our children to celebrate.

I shared the start of the tradition with my first recipe for Hoppin’ John, still a favorite to this day. It is a rustic dish of black eyed peas and ham that is full of flavor. Eating ‘poor’ on New Year’s Day is believed to lead to eating ‘rich’ the rest of the year. Candidly if this is eating poor, I’d be happy to eat that way all year. Relaxed, approachable food brimming with flavor and fantastic texture? Sounds pretty good to me.

One tricky thing about our tradition is timing the lucky black eyed pea dish to the potential of eating at midnight or in the morning. One must be one the ready with a flexible recipe that isn’t fussy to reheat. Always loving to come up something new, this year I employed my trusty slow cooker feeling it could time out at midnight, be stored in the fridge (the insert) and easily rewarmed New Year’s Day for those who missed midnight.

Knowing pork is lucky, I included two types in these Black Eyed Peas with Ham and Bacon. A pork shank (or ham hocks) is added along with some bacon. Cooked long and slow with cumin, a bit of cayenne as well as onion, garlic and coins of carrots (again a lucky symbol for the New Year). The dish is sultry and deeply flavored; something that will set your new year off on a good footing!

Ingredients

½ teaspoon Olive Oil
1 medium Yellow Onion , peeled and chopped
2 large Garlic Cloves , chopped
2 medium Carrots , scrubbed and cut into ‘coins’ (round 1/2” sliced)
2 pound Ham Shank or Hocks
4 thick slices Smoked Bacon , cut into 1/2-inch slices across the width
2 15-ounce cans Black Eyed Peas , drained and rinsed
1 cup low sodium Chicken Stock
1 ½ teaspoon ground Cumin
½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Instructions

In a medium skillet heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Sauté the onion and garlic for 2-3 minutes, until they just begin to soften but are still firm and not fully translucent. Add to the slow cooker.
Sprinkle the carrots on top of the onions and garlic. Layer on the ham shank, bacon, black eyed peas, stock and spices in that order.
Cook on Low for 6-8 hours until the ham is fully cooked. Strip the ham from the bone (discard the bone) and tear into bite-size pieces. Add back to the slow cooker and stir in.