Spicy Black-Eyed Peas

Alyson Stringer (originally from Margaret McCoy Sargent)

Yield: 8 servings

I’ve tried a few black-eyed pea recipes over the years, and this is one of my favorites. Goes great with smoked ham or fried turkey. Enjoy the good fortune coming your way! (Nov 2010)

The “good luck” traditions of eating black-eyed peas at Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, are recorded in the Babylonian Talmud (compiled ~500 CE), Horayot 12A: “Abaye [d. 339 CE] said, now that you have established that good-luck symbols avail, you should make it a habit to see qara (bottle gourd), rubiya (black-eyed peas, Arabic lubiya), kartei (leeks), silka (either beets or spinach), and tamrei (dates) on your table on the New Year.” In the United States, the first Sephardi Jews arrived in Georgia in the 1730s, and have lived there continuously since. The Jewish practice was apparently adopted by non-Jews around the time of the American Civil War, possibly because Union troops, especially in areas targeted by General William Tecumseh Sherman, typically stripped the countryside of all stored food, crops and livestock, and destroyed whatever they could not carry away. At that time, Northerners considered “field peas” and field corn suitable only for animal fodder, and did not steal or destroy these humble foods.

1 lb fresh or dried black eyed peas* 

1 tsp salt

2 cups water 

1 tsp ground cumin

3 slices bacon 

1 tsp dry mustard

1 (16oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained 

1/2 tsp curry powder

1 large onion, chopped 

1/2 tsp chili powder

1 large green bell pepper, diced 

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 large red bell pepper, diced 

3 Tbsp sugar

1 clove garlic, minced 

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro 

Combine black-eyed peas and water. (If using dried peas, increase the water to at least 4 cups to cover the peas in your pan). Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover. simmer for 20 minutes for fresh peas and 1 hour for dried peas. Peas should be almost tender. Drain and set aside. 

Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Remove bacon to drain, reserving drippings in the skillet. Crumble bacon and set aside. 

Stir onion, peppers, and garlic into bacon drippings and cook until softened. Add tomatoes, black eyed peas and the rest of the spices except for cilantro. 

Add a small amount of water (about 1/2 cup), bring all to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Pour mixture into a serving dish, sprinkle with cilantro and bacon, and serve.

*You can substitute canned black eyed peas (drained) or thawed frozen peas, but do not cook them the 20 minutes to one hour.