Easy Cajun Hoppin John Recipe - My Kitchen Serenity (2024)

FAQs

What is a Charleston Hoppin John? ›

A staple of the Southern table, Hoppin' John is famously eaten on New Year's Day, but is just as good any other day as well. This version features tender and earthy field peas cooked with fluffy rice and rich and smoky ham hocks.

Hoppin' John, also known as Carolina peas and rice, is a peas and rice dish served in the Southern United States. It is made with cowpeas, mainly, black-eyed peas and Sea Island red peas in the Sea Islands and iron and clay peas in the Southeast US, and rice, chopped onion, and sliced bacon, seasoned with salt.

What's the difference between Hoppin' John and black-eyed peas? Hoppin' John has black-eyed peas in it, but it also has other ingredients. In this recipe, the black-eyed peas are stewed with onion, garlic, celery, and a ham hock, similar to how some Southern-style black-eyed peas would be cooked.

Some say an old, hobbled man called hoppin' John became known for selling peas and rice on the streets of Charleston. Others say slave children hopped around the table in eager anticipation of the dish. Most food historians think the name derives from a French term for dried peas, “pois pigeons.”

And our tastiest superstitious tradition is eating Hoppin' John on New Year's Day. This classic Southern dish, a one-pot meal of black-eyed peas, ham hock, and rice, is believed by many (not just the Sterlings) to ensure wealth and bring good luck in the upcoming year.

A highlight on the culinary map of the Palmetto State is Hoppin' John. Derived from the Gullah culture, this dish is as legendary as it is savory. Locally sourced ingredients, flavorful seasonings and spices and a certain level of flare are all part of what makes this a classic Southern dish.

For some, the tradition of eating Hoppin' John begins at midnight (New Year's Eve), when the dish is served with a champagne toast. New Year's Day is the traditional day to eat Hoppin' John. Any leftovers can be enjoyed on later days, but be aware that the name of the dish changes to Skippin' Jenny.

Hoppin' John is also known to many as Carolina Peas and Rice. Gullah or Low Country cuisine reflects the cooking of the Carolinas, especially the Sea islands (a cluster of islands stretching along the coats of South Carolina and northern Georgia).

The crop was brought by enslaved Africans in the 1600s as they were transported to the Americas. West Africans have long considered black-eyed peas a good luck charm that warded off evil spirits, and they are often served on holidays and birthdays.

For many Southerners, New Year's Day means we're eating Hoppin' John with a side of collard greens and cornbread. A bowlful of this classic recipe filled with black-eyed peas, Carolina Gold rice, and ham hock (or bacon) ensures we kick off the year with a promise of good fortune.

What state is Hoppin John from? ›

Each location developed its own distinctive rice and bean dishes—the Moros y Cristianos of Cuba (made with black beans), the Pois et Riz Collé of Louisiana (made with red beans), and the Hoppin' John of the South Carolina Lowcountry.

The African roots of the dish can be traced to the antebellum rice culture of the South Carolina Lowcountry, where peas and rice have been cooked together for centuries. Tradition dictates that a side of collard greens representing paper money be served with Hoppin' John to ensure prosperity in the coming year.

After being domesticated there 5,000 years ago, black-eyed peas made their way into the diets of people in virtually all parts of that continent. They then traveled to the Americas in the holds of slave ships as food for the enslaved.

During the harsh winter, the Confederate soldiers survived on the remaining black-eyed peas, promoting this humble and nourishing legume into a symbol of fortune and prosperity in the American South.

Other Legumes: Many legumes can be used as substitutes for black-eyed peas in recipes. Examples include lentils, chickpeas, kidney beans, navy beans, pinto beans, or black beans. These legumes have different flavors and textures, so choose one that complements your dish.

Hoppin' John is a Southern dish made with black-eyed peas, rice, and pork (usually bacon, but sometimes ham hock). It usually features an onion and other seasonings for flavor. Hoppin' John can be eaten throughout the year, but it's especially common on New Year's Day.

The southern pea, Vigna unguiculata, has its own lexicon of names. Yankees call it the cowpea, a name never heard south of the lilac–crape myrtle line. Southerners also know it as the black-eyed-pea, the pink eye pea, the purple hull pea, the cream pea or the crowder.