Friday, December 31, 2004

 

While my peas soak ...

Here’s what I’m up to this New Year’s Eve afternoon: whuppin’ up a mess of Hoppin’ John.

There are a bunch of different ways to make it. The following comes from Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer and Ethan Becker, The All New All Purpose Joy of Cooking (New York: Scribner, 1997), 257.

A friend of mine, a correspondent for me when I was a state editor at a Texas paper, gave the book to Dr. ER and I as a weddin’ present in 1997.

My friend, a native rural Texan, took the extra step of copyin’ the game instructions and recipes from the original Joy of Cooking (how to skin a squirrel, how to prepared jugged hare, cook a muskrat or armadillo, things like that) and including copies in the newfangled cookbook. Ol’ ER cherishes it all.

Danged if there’s not a connection to the Reformation in this write-up!

Hoppin’ John (Carolina Rice and Bean Pilau) – 8 to 10 servings

Pilau, that is, a rice dish made with meat or vegetables, was probably brought to the Carolinas in the early seventeenth century by the Huguenots, French Protestants who came to America in order to escape persecution in their homeland. Pilau is Middle Eastern, not French, but it had come to be made in Provence during the late Middle Ages, when Muslims settled widely throughout Mediterranean Europe. When French-style Middle Eastern pilau came to America, it blended with rice dishes made by African Americans, who were experts at cooking rice. What resulted were various American pilaus – or pilafs, purlows, perlews, and so on – of which Hoppin’ John is today the best known. Southerners traditionally serve Hoppin’ John at New Year’s, but it is delicious at any time.

Pick over and rinse:
8 ounces dried black-eyed peas (about 1 ¼ cups)

Turn the peas into a large ovenproof pot and add enough cold water to cover by 1 inch. Boil rapidly for 1 minute, then remove from the heat, cover and let stand for 1 ½ hours. Drain the peas and rinse thoroughly. Return the peas to the pot and add:

3 cups water
1 ½ cups chopped onions
1 tablespoon minced garlic (optional)
4 ounces smoked ham, diced
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 large bay leaves

Simmer gently, uncovered, just until tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain, reserving the cooking liquid. Discard the bay leaves. Season the peas and ham with:

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Cover and set aside. Let the pea cooking liquid settle for 5 minutes, then pour it into a 4-cup measure, discarding the residue at the bottom of the pot. Add to make 2 ¾ cups:

½ to 1 ¼ cups chicken stock

Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Set the same pot you used to cook the peas over medium heat and add:

2 tablespoons butter
2 to 4 slices bacon, diced

Cook, stirring, until the bacon has released most of its fat and has begun to crisp. Stir in:

1 ½ cups long-grain rice
1 teaspoon salt

Cook, stirring to coat the grain with fat, for 1 minute. Add the pea cooking liquid and bring to a simmer. Stir once with a fork, then cover and bake until the rice has absorbed all the liquid, 20 to 25 minutes. Scatter the peas and ham over the tops, cover and return to the oven for 3 minutes. Sprinkle with:

¼ cup minced fresh parsley

Toss lightly with a fork until the rice is fluffed and all the ingredients are mixed. Cover and let stand for 10 to 30 minutes before serving. Hoppin’ John can be made 1 day ahead, coverered, and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature, then bake, covered and without stirring, in a 275-degree F oven until just warmed through.


-ER



Comments:
I was introduced to hoppin' john at
a pot luck party at my work. I would
highly recommend it.
 
Happy New Year, dude!
 
Happy New Year! I hope you enjoy your Hoppin' John!
 
Wow, how nice--a history lesson on the dish, too. I've never tried it, but I'm pretty sure I'd like it, at least I've got the pedigree and the taste buds for it. I have Huguenot ancestry and I love Moroccan food.

Happy New Year!
 
Happy New Year to all in whatever capacity works, whether that be starting the year with the worst hangover ever or sitting it a recliner watching a full day of football on TV or planning a year that has to be better than the last.

And to ER, Dr. ER and Bird, may God continue to bless you all.

Teditor
 
Hey, Mr. ER: I'm not sure how this stacks up with what other folks prefer, but we had our black-eyed peas cooked up with a mess of leftover Christmas ham for New Year's Day. We celebrated the new year on the farm near Hammon, OK, and my mother-in-law fixed 'em for us. They were great.
 
Mainlin' peas, with ham on the side, is a great way to usher in the new year. I only do Hoppin' John every few years. :)
 
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