Hoppin' John with Collard Greens
I decided to cook hoppin' john, a classic one-pot dish traditionally made for New Years in the South (Carney). I took traditional techniques and ingredients to make an updated version of the dish, recipe adapted from a "Saveur"-published recipe (McCray). "Rice seasoning, using herbs, heavy amounts of pepper, and salt, meat...has roots in West Africa," (Opie). This particular recipe didn't include pepper, however it still turned out delicious! For a full Southern New Year's experience, serve with collard greens as I did, maybe add tomato, symbolizing good health and serve with corn bread.
Ingredients:
Collard Greens
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Preparation:
For the collard greens, remove the stalk and roll the leaves to cut them into strips. The ham hock should be picked and cut for getting the fat and the smokey bits leftover from carving the meat. This ham hock came from the leftovers of my family's Easter dinner. So, in spirit of tradition, I followed the technique of implementing leftovers for new dishes. Celery and onion should be finely chopped. Black-eyed peas need to be rinsed (uncooked) or strained (canned). The rice may have to be rinsed as well, depending on the brand. |
Add the ham pieces and fat to a saucepan on medium-high heat to melt the fat (about 1-2 minutes). Add the onions. Olive oil can also be added if the onions are sticking to the pan and you don't want to add more ham. Add salt and pepper and cook the onions, stirring occasionally, until they are translucent (about 2-4 minutes).
At this point, the collard greens can be added to the pan, sautéing them in the fat over medium-high heat until they soften and absorb the meat's flavor (about 4-6 minutes or more depending on how much greens are added). Next, pour in the chicken broth and bring it to a simmer. Cover the saucepan, letting the greens cook while making the hoppin' john (about 45-60 minutes) or until they are nice and soft.
Hoppin' John
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Repeat adding ham to a new pot and melting the fat over medium-high heat. Add celery and onions, salt and pepper, cooking until the onions become translucent.
When the rice is done, take out the bay leaf (and the cloves if you can find them), add the cooked black-eyed peas and strained collard greens, stir, cover and let sit for 5-10 minutes to allow the beans to absorb the flavor (some recipes call for separate cooking of the beans and rice, some say to cook them together; I thought this method was easy and worked well).
Fruit Salad with a modern twist
This recipe is from Soul Food Love, a cookbook created by Alice Randall and her daughter Caroline Randall Williams to honor family history and traditions and update recipes to be more health conscious. Fruit salads, like many other soul food side dishes, were accompanied with many meals and family gatherings. "Mixed fruits [came] in various forms and fashions...served In Dear's, Grandma's, Nana's, and Mama's kitchens," (Randall). This salad incorporates watermelon, a classic, even if it is stigmatized by society, avocado, cherry tomatoes, and crumbled feta or goat cheese (I chose to use goat cheese), mixed with a light lemon dressing consisting of lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.
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