Easy One Pot Collard Greens and Black-Eyed Peas
By: Laura Reefer
Southern Style Collard Greens and Black-Eyed Peas is a hearty southern dish full of comfort and tradition. There are just some foods that seem made for each other. I have always loved certain dishes mixed together—I can eat me some rice, black-eyed peas, with sweet Vidalia onions anytime.
I grew up on country cooking and can eat a mess of greens or black-eyed peas. But all my life, I never considered mixing collard greens and black-eyed peas together in one pot until this year. Momma always cooked them separately. I never considered anything different from my Momma’s recipe or style of cooking, until I saw this on a cooking show and immediately prepared it. Yes, I had the ingredients on hand wink wink. I usually make large batches and can or freeze them to enjoy throughout the year.
Let me tell y’all preparing collards and black-eyed peas together is one of those simple dishes that just makes sense once you try it. I was hooked!! Collard greens and black-eyed peas make the perfect side dish, but they are also hearty enough to eat as a meal all by themselves. They are full of flavor, filling, and made from simple ingredients. Serve them with cornbread, sliced onion, or a little pepper sauce, and you have yourself a meal that sticks to your ribs.
A Southern Tradition
Here in the South, black-eyed peas and collard greens are a New Year tradition. Many people say they symbolize prosperity, wealth, and luck for the coming year. While I do not believe in getting “good luck” from eating a certain food, I do love the tradition behind it. More than that, I love that it brings people together around the table for a good, hearty meal.
Growing up in the south both greens and black eyes were prepared throughout the year as side dishes. Both dishes create an old-fashioned and satisfying feeling. This dish is easy to make and it’s just delicious. Sometimes the best meals are the ones made from humble ingredients, and this is one of them.
My momma taught me how to make both collard greens and black eyed peas as side dishes and the recipe I’m sharing is how I would typically prepare my collard greens and then mix in the black eyed peas. If you look at the ingredients with collards and black eyed as separate recipes—this is how I was taught to make them. Minus the vinegar. I learned about the vinegar about 30 yrs ago and it really does help enhance the flavors.
What You Will Need
- Collards: Sometimes you can find collards bagged and chopped and honestly it only saves a few minutes. Fresh collard greens are the best and are available all year, but they’re at their peak in winter and early spring. When picking them out at your local grocery store or farmer’s market, you want to avoid wilted or yellowed leaves.
- Ham bone, Ham pieces, or Ham hock: These are typically cured and smoked, and adds a rich, salty, and smoky flavor to soups, stews, and greens. If you are not into pork, you can decline.
- Black Eyed Peas: Fresh is best. But you can use frozen, dried, or canned.
- Chicken Bouillon or Broth: Any bouillon works.
- Bacon grease or Olive oil
- Onion: Vidalia onions are the best to use. I am biased about Vidalias, but you can use yellow or white onions.
- Seasonings: season salt, or regular salt with a dash of extra spices (black pepper, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne and red pepper flakes).
- Apple cider vinegar: Apple cider vinegar is the best for this recipe, but you can use white vinegar.
Next, we are going to talk about prepping the greens for this dish or really any dish with collards, or turnips greens. This is the most time consuming part, but I cook with love and use freshest ingredients. If not straight from the garden or farmer’s market (sometimes produce department), they have been preserved by me from fresh.
Substitutes:
You can substitute these ingredients.
- Fresh Collard Greens for fresh bagged and chopped, frozen, or even canned collard greens. Note that canned has it’s own flavor profile so you may not need to add the seasoning.
- Black Eyed-Peas: Use Fresh, Froze, or canned Black eyed-peas. Honestly, I use my fresh frozen Black-Eyes, or dried-rehydrated Black-Eyes. If you are using dried I recommend letting them soak over night first. It will take longer for the dried ones to cook, so cook first before adding to this dish.
- Apple Cider Vinegar can be substituted with white vinegar or don’t use vinegar at all, but I will tell you the vinegar enhances the flavor and balances out any bitterness.
- Chicken Bouillon with Chicken broth or vice versa.
- Bacon Grease: Use olive oil
- Ham
Substituting the ingredients or not adding them at all will change the flavor of this recipe. But You Do You!!
Prepping the Greens
Prepping the collard greens are most important steps
Cleaning the Greens
Let’s talk about this very important step, cleaning your greens ( yes even if you are using the bagged one). If you are using fresh collards you will want to clean them properly before cooking. Greens can hold a lot of sand or dirt, so you want to make sure to clean them good. There is nothing worse and ruins the greens than gritty bite.
I typically fill a clean kitchen sink with warm water a let them soak while I wash them. Remove the greens out of the water, let the dirty water out of the sink, and fill a clean sink back up with more fresh warm water. Submerge the greens again, give them another scrub, and rinse. I typically repeat this process until my sink has no more grit in it after washing. Now, washing the greens is the most time consuming part but a very important step.
Destem and cut the Greens
My Momma would cut them first before washing. I don’t like the stems. So I wash them whole and tear them into small pieces away from the stems. Putting them in a clean pot for cooking.
If you are cutting them my Momma taught me take a handful of greens and roll them up. Then cut the into small pieces and put them in a clean pot for cooking. Smaller pieces will break down and cook faster.
Collard Greens and Black-Eyed Peas Recipe
Southern Style Collard Greens and Black-Eyed Peas
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- In a large pot or Dutch Oven, heat the bacon grease or olive oil over medium heat.1 Tablespoon Bacon Grease or Olive Oil
- Add the chopped onion and garlic; cook until tender (about 5 minutes)1 Small Sweet Vidalia Onion, 2 cloves Garlic
- Stir in the collard greens and let them cook down slightly (about 5 minutes)4 cups Collard Greens
- Add ham. Stir in the black-eyed peas, chicken broth, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and sugar if using. . Lower heat to medium-low. Cover and cook for 20 minutes.31 ounces Black-Eyed Peas, 2 cups Chicken Broth, 1/2 teaspoon Salt, 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper, 1/4 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes, Ham Bone, 1 teaspoon Sugar
- Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Stir in the apple cider vinegar before serving.1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
- Serve warm as a side dish or a hearty meal on its own.
- Note: Vinegar or “Apple cider vinegar “ is used when cooking collards greens (or any greens) to balance out the bitterness of the greens. It adds a freshness to this dish. Plus is helps to tenderize any tough collards that may be in your batch.
Nutrition
Notes
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Storing Leftovers
Once the collards and black eyed-pea cool, then place them in an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. You can also put these in an airtight freezer container and freeze them for up to 3 months. Then thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
How to Reheat
Reheat on the stove over medium-low heat until warmed through, stirring now and then. If it seems thick add some broth or water. You can also use the microwave to reheat in short intervals, stirring between each one.
Can this Recipe be Canned?
If you are making in a larger batch you can double this recipe and then prepare to can your side dish. I recommend following the pressure-canning resource. This recipe needs to use a pressure canner because of the mixed ingredients of vegetable, broth, meat products, and seasoning. Low-acid food like these requires pressure canning method. Wash Bath method is not recommended. If you wish to can this recipe please read the following safety and handling for food preservation.
How to Serve
This recipe uses basic ingredients that work well together and can serve as it’s own hearty meal. Especially when served over rice or cornbread. It pairs nicely with Smothered Pork Chops, Ham, Country Fired Steak.
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