A Healthier Hoppin’ John
This is a traditional old fashion Southern Dish. I am adapting the recipe from a can of RANCH Style Brand Black-Eyed Peas. Ranch Style Brand is a Texas based company best known for canning beans with unique seasonings for nearly 100 years.
Black-Eyed Peas (also know as Cow peas) can be hard to find in certain parts of the country, which is why I defer to a national brand. (And they’re tasty and quick to cook.) Black-Eyed Peas are legumes, not peas and are loaded with all the nutritional benefits of beans. High in protein, high in soluble fiber, which lowers cholesterol, and high in complex carbohydrates to keep you feeling full for a longer period of time. They are also rich in vitamins, folate, and lignans — which are thought to reduce the risk of cancers, osteoporosis and heart disease. They taste really good and are fat free too. When combined with rice, legumes form a complete source of protein.
You can omit the obvious ingredients, use generic Black-Eyed Peas and add some vegetables to make a great vegetarian meal. I’m using brown or wild rice instead of white rice and recommending turkey sausage to keep the fat and salt contents lower. This way I can control the amount of processed salt (and other ingredients) added to my food by someone else and don’t feel so bad about adding a slice of real bacon. Ranch Brand, like many canned foods, does have a significant amount of sodium but they blend some interesting seasonings making a SouthWestern/Texas tradition. It’s important to use low sodium broth too. Otherwise the meal can be a bit salty.
Brown Rice is better than white rice; everyone has been told that (more fiber, higher concentration of vitamins because it remains a whole grain). Using brown rice here does not alter the taste difference and your kids will not cringe at “brown rice.”
“Hoppin’ John” is a very easy meal to make. I am using my Emile Henry Flame Top pot. It’s ceramic — made from a really tough Burgundian Clay. It can go on the stove top, in the oven and the freezer. This new line of ceramics will work on gas, electric and induction cook tops. I can microwave left-overs in it. It cleans up easily and can go in the dishwasher. Making a meal like Hoppin’ John works well in this sort of cooking vessel. The underside of the lid has raised dots to help evenly distribute evaporated juices making these vessels great for braising and any sort of slow cooking. They are beautifully made too — you can serve directly from them at the table and save clean up. Clay pots are also much lighter than cast iron, making them great to store and reheat left overs in. I’m always nervous about putting a large cast iron Dutch oven on my fridge shelf.
Ingredients:
· 2 TBsp Olive Oil
· ½ Onion, chopped (medium sized)
· 2 Stalks Celery, chopped
· 1 Clove Garlic, minced
· 2 Strips Bacon (optional)
· 1 Can Ranch Style Brand Black Eyed Peas with bacon (15oz.)
· 8 oz. Kielbasa or Polish Turkey Sausage (Sliced)
· ½ Cup Brown or Wild Rice
· 1 can (14 oz.) Chicken or Vegetable Broth, Low Sodium and fat free (or 14 oz. water)
· Additional water (as needed).
If you are using the Emile Henry Flame Top, as I am, first warm the pot over medium to low heat. Add chicken broth, a pat of butter and the Rice. Bring to boil and Cook for 40–45 until broth is absorbed and rice is tender.
I have issues with cooking the rice to perfection when I add rice to the pot with other ingredients. Even if I give it extra time to cook, many of the rice kernels are still tough.
While the rice is cooking, heat a sauté pan and pour in some Olive Oil and increase the heat a little. Add the celery and onions and cook until they begin to sweat. Then add the garlic. Don’t burn the garlic, stir occasionally. Add the optional bacon. (The Peas are fat free, the turkey kielbasa is reduced fat and the rice has no fat, you have used low sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth or water, so don’t beat yourself up over a piece of bacon.)
If you use bacon you can actually do without the olive oil. Cook the bacon first, then add the onion, garlic and celery to the bacon fat. (What’s better than bacon fat?) With either variation, when these have rendered down, add the can of Black-Eyed Peas (DO NOT Drain), the brown or wild rice and the chicken broth. Toss in the sliced kielbasa. Bring just to boil, then reduce heat and cook slowly on a low simmer for about 5-10 minutes. Add to the cooked rice pot and mix well. Stir occasionally and add water if it begins to look dried out. Heat through and serve.
You can add additional vegetables toward the last 20 minutes of the cooking cycle (chop up some Spinach, Okra or Collard Greens or Kale or Beet Greens, etc) if you like. If you are cooking for a larger family, double the amount of Black-Eyed Peas, Rice and Kielbasa. Try to keep a 50/50 ratio between the Black-Eyed Peas and rice. Keep an eye on the liquids to make sure it doesn’t dry out. If you cannot find Ranch Style Black-Eyed Peas, buy a bag of dried black-eyed peas. You will need to soak them overnight in water (a minimum for 4 hours). Season to taste (start with ½ teaspoon) paprika, chili seasoning, cumin, oregano, thyme and a bay leaf. Pre-cook the Black-Eyed Peas for 1 hour (until tender) on the stove before adding to your other ingredients.
Black–Eyed Peas can be pureed into a great spread for Crostini or crackers or served as side dish. They take to a variety of seasonings and are served spicy in the South West and with Collard Greens and Ham in the South.
