Authentic Southern Hoppin’ John Recipe
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Hoppin’ John is a Southern bean and rice dish made with black eyed peas that is a traditional New Years Day recipe. Starting the year with Hoppin’ John is said to bring good luck and a happy new year but it’s delicious enough to eat year-round!
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It just wouldn’t be January 1st in the South without a big helping of Hoppin’ John! This classic Southern dish is made with black-eyed peas and rice, cooked with bacon, bell pepper, and onion. The result is a flavorful dish said to bring good luck in the year to come, but you don’t need to miss out the rest of the year, this easy recipe is a delicious side dish year-round.
Want more classic Southern recipes? Try our fried green tomatoes, tomato pie, country white gravy, drop biscuits and sausage gravy, or Charleston style shrimp and grits!
HOPPIN’ JOHN HISTORY
There are many theories as to where traditional Hoppin’ John got it’s name:
The origins of the name “Hoppin’ John” are slightly less clear. 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.”
History.com
Being from the low country of South Carolina, I’m partial to the Charleston legend!
Ingredients
- bacon
- butter
- green bell pepper
- onion
- garlic
- chicken broth or chicken stock
- black eyed peas
- long-grain white rice (cooked)
- green onions for garnish
Step by step
This hoppin’ john recipe is very easy to make!
- Cook bacon over medium-high until crispy in a large pot, then add butter and veggies to the bacon fat and cook until soft.
- Add garlic, then add water and scrape the bottom of the pan to deglaze all that yummy flavor!
- Add beans and simmer over low heat 25 minutes.
- Stir rice into beans and serve!
Serving suggestions
If you’re serving this Southern peas and rice dish for good fortune on New Year’s Day it is a new year’s tradition to serve it with a side of collard greens, turnip greens, or mustard greens (to represent the color of money) and cornbread. The collards represent green paper money, the black-eyed peas represent coins, and the cornbread is gold.
Because the black-eyed peas also represent coins, and in some families, it is tradition to serve the good luck meal with a penny under the plate as well!
If you’re not serving this classic southern recipe on New Year’s you can eat it on it’s own as a main dish or with a main like pulled pork or fried chicken. For more inspiration see our ideas for what to serve with black-eyed peas.
Tips for best results
- If using dry black-eyed peas, be sure to follow the package instructions for soaking prior to adding to the recipe. (We usually soak ours on New Year’s Eve.)
- If using canned black-eyed peas be sure to rinse the peas before using them. The canning liquid adds extra salt that will affect the end result if not rinsed.
- For convenience, cook the rice while the peas are simmering.
- Season the Hoppin’ John with salt or hot sauce or cajun seasoning to taste after combining the rice and beans.
- For a traditional Southern New Year’s meal, serve with Collard Greens and Cornbread or Corn Muffins!
Variations
Many recipes use leftover ham bone or smoked ham hock to flavor the meat, as in my Southern green beans recipe, but this requires a much longer cooking time than using bacon.
If you want to make it without the bacon I suggest andouille sausage links as an alternative. To date, I haven’t tried any vegetarian versions I would recommend.
Storage
Store leftover Hoppin’ John in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave, adding a little extra broth of butter if it is drying out.
If you try this recipe, please comment and rate it below, I love hearing from you!
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Hoppin’ John: a Southern New Year’s Tradition
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8 1x
Description
Hoppin’ John is a Southern bean and rice dish made with black eyed peas that is traditionally eaten on New Year’s Day. Starting the year with Hoppin’ John is said to bring good luck but it’s delicious enough to eat year-round!
Ingredients
- 5 slices thick cut bacon, cut into 1/2” pieces
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 small green pepper, diced
- 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups black eyed peas
- 2 cups rice, cooked
- green onion for garnish if desired
- hot sauce or cajun seasoning for serving if desired
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, cook the bacon over medium heat until crispy.
- Add butter and chopped pepper and onions and cook until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.
- Add garlic and cook an additional minute.
- Add 4 cups of water to the pan and scrape the bottom to deglaze.
- Add beans to the pan and bring to a simmer.
- Simmer 25 minutes or until beans are tender (not mushy.)
- Mix rice into bean mixture and season to taste with salt and/or hot sauce.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
- If using dry beans, be sure to follow the package instructions for soaking prior to adding to the recipe.
- If using canned black eyed peas be sure to rinse the peas before using them. The canning liquid adds extra salt that will affect the end result if not rinsed.
- For convenience, cook the rice while the peas are simmering.
- Season the Hoppin’ John with salt or hot sauce to taste after combining the rice and beans.
- For a traditional Southern New Year’s meal, serve with Collard Greens and Cornbread or Corn Muffins!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Category: side
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: Southern American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/2 cup
- Calories: 287
- Sugar: 2.7 g
- Sodium: 122.1 mg
- Fat: 11.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 35.8 g
- Protein: 3.6 g
- Cholesterol: 23 mg
we eat this every year, love your recipe!
So good! We make this every year!
That sounds cozy and delicious! Thanks for sharing and happy New Year!
Happy New Year to you too Katerina!!