Southern Black Eyed Peas Recipe with Collard Greens (2024)

This Southern black eyed peas and collards recipe is a New Year's special meal that I grew up on every year. Tasty by themselves - out of this world when combined into one dish!

You may also love my Crock Pot Black Eyed Peas with ham. Both of these recipes are fabulous served with my Southern Cornbread or Easy Homemade Biscuits.

A simple black eyed peas recipe that's supposed to bring good luck and prosperity in the new year. Although I don't believe in "good luck" by eating a particular food (or by any other means, really), it's a great hearty meal and a fun tradition.

💖 Why You'll Love This Recipe

• Hearty & Nutritious - Collards and black eyed peas are both very nutritious all alone, but added together they make a very hearty and nutritious combo that's sure to become a favorite.
• Great for New Year's Dinner - A fabulous combination to add to your New Year's dinner celebration.
• Delicious Combination of flavors - This canned black eyed peas recipe that includes collards, ham, and other seasonings makes for a delicious side dish or main course for the New Year or any other day of the year.

🥘 Ingredients

📖 Ingredient Notes / Variations

• Collards: Use fresh collards for this recipe. Sometimes I can find them already washed and chopped, which saves quite a bit of time. Otherwise, carefully wash your own, trim out the stem, and chop.
• Ham: Use cooked, chopped ham. I like to utilize my leftover Christmas ham for this very reason. Adds some great flavor.
• Onion: I used a red onion. Use whatever type of onion you have.
• Water (not shown): Feel free to use broth if you wish, but it's not necessary - the flavor is great without it.
• Black eyed peas: Use canned with only salt added so you don't risk clashing flavors. Drain the beans before adding.

(See recipe card below for ingredient quantities and full recipe instructions)

🔪 Step-By-Step Instructions

Step 1: Wash collards thoroughly. Remove center stem, and chop into bite-size pieces.

Step 2: Heat Dutch oven on stove top on low-medium heat (about 3-4). Add onions and garlic and cook about 5 minutes until beginning to soften.

Step 3: Add collards to the pan and stir together with onions and garlic. Cover and cook for 5 minutes (still on low-medium heat).

Step 4: Add ham, water (or broth), salt, and black pepper. Stir, cover, and cook on low-medium heat for 20 minutes or until collards are tender.

See Also

Crisp Sautéed Red Potatoes RecipeEasy Sweet Collard Greens RecipeMolasses Pudding cake recipe is a southern favorite.8 Tasty Yet Healthy Grilling Recipes

Step 5: Add drained black eyed peas to the pan and stir together with collards.

Step 6: Turn heat off and cover for about 5 minutes to warm through. Serve hot.

(Scroll down for full recipe and print capabilities)

💭 Expert Cooking Tips

• Pork makes the black eyed peas "southern" ... so adding ham hock, ham chunks, and/or bacon and bacon fat is really all you need to give your peas a southern flare. If adding bacon, make sure to cook it before adding.
• I recommend you use canned black eyed peas in this recipe, as using canned beans will save you time. Using dry beans takes more planning, but they are cheaper, and you do have more control over the levels of salt and seasoning with dry beans.
• If you want to slow cook some dry black eyed peas to use in this recipe, simply soak for 8-12 hours or overnight in lots of water. Drain and rinse the beans before adding to your slow cooker and add your liquid. For every pound of dry beans, add 3-4 cups of liquid. Cook the beans on high about 6 hours or low for about 8 hours (or until soft). Add salt to taste, then use in your recipe. Two cans of black eyed peas equals about 2 cups worth of cooked peas.
• I recommend you start with fresh collard greens that are not yet chopped. This way I can control the process of removing the tough stem centers. Collard greens can be quite sandy, so make sure to wash each leaf individually, rubbing gently with your hands to get off any dirt or sand. You can certainly use pre-chopped, pre-washed collard greens to save time if you can find them.

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