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New Year's: Black-Eyed Peas and Collard Greens

Source of Recipe

From "One Hour Comfort" by America's Test Kitchen


Recipe Introduction

"Black-eyed peas and collard greens are stalwarts of the American South. Plenty of Southern cooks insist that the only proper preparation of collards involves long, slow cooking and plenty of pork. Collards are swooningly good cooked this way, and their earthy, slightly smoky flavor is a perfect complement to the meaty pork. Southern tradition even holds that if you eat a plate of collards and black-eyed peas all stewed up with pork, tomatoes, and spices on New Year's Day, you'll experience greater prosperity and increased wealth in the year ahead. Swapping the time-consuming dried legumes for convenient canned black-eyed peas helps get this dish to the table in an hour, as does giving the collards and tomatoes a head start on the stove before adding the peas. Smoky bacon and savory chicken broth quickly build the coveted meaty flavor backbone of this dish. For maximum prosperity, be careful not to crush those black-eyed peas—stir them gently."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 6 slices bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces
â—¦ 1 onion, halved and sliced thin
â—¦ 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
â—¦ 4 cloves garlic, minced
â—¦ ½ teaspoon ground cumin
â—¦ ½ teaspoon pepper
â—¦ ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
â—¦ 1 ½ cups chicken broth
â—¦ 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
â—¦ 1 pound collard greens, stemmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
â—¦ 2 (15-ounce) cans black-eyed peas, rinsed
â—¦ 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
â—¦ 1 teaspoon sugar


Recipe

Cook bacon in Dutch oven over medium heat until crispy, 5 to 7 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel-lined plate; set aside.

Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from pot. Add onion and salt and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in garlic, cumin, pepper, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Stir in broth and tomatoes and their juice and bring to boil.
Add collard greens, cover, and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until greens are tender, about 15 minutes.

Add black-eyed peas and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until greens are silky and completely tender, about 15 minutes. Uncover, increase heat to medium-high, and cook until liquid is reduced by one-quarter, about 5 minutes. Stir in vinegar, sugar, and reserved bacon. Serve.

Serves 6 to 8