Hoppin John for Luck

Slow Cooker Beans

1 lb black-eyed peas

1 bay leaf

1 stalk celery

1 smoked ham hock

4 cups Chicken broth

This is my favorite way to cook up a batch of beans.  Just put everything in a slow cooker, make sure the liquid covers the beans by two inches, set it on low and check it 8 hours later. (Note:  apparently this is not safe with red kidney beans although I can’t remember the reason—so check before cooking red kidney beans or just don’t do it this way.)

I cooked my beans the day before and put in the fridge overnight.

Hoppin John

1 T vegetable oil

1 yellow onion, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

Diced ham hock (from the beans cooked the day before)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp semi-sweet smoked paprika*

2 tsp (plus more to taste) Tony Chachere’s seasoning

1 cup parboiled rice

Black-eyed peas plus its liquid (cooked the day before)

2-3 cups chicken stock

Heat oil over medium – medium-high heat in a large dutch oven.  Add diced onion and celery.  Cook and stir often until the vegetables are softened but not browned—up to 10 minutes.  Add the garlic and stir just until fragrant, about 30 minutes.

Add the diced ham hock and seasonings.  Please note that I added some smoked paprika because I didn’t have a smoked ham hock today and I was trying to add some smokey flavor.  Hopefully I will have a smoked ham hock next time, and if so I probably won’t add the paprika.

Stir in the rice and toast for a minute or two.  Stir in the beans, and add 2-3 cups of chicken stock, depending on how much liquified was left in the beans.

Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and cover.  Cook 20 minutes, take off the heat and let it sit 5 minutes.