Spicing Up a Good Luck Favorite

About author / Amy Powell

World traveler; gourmet 30 minute meals; lover of exotic ingredients; winner on FoodTV's Chefs vs City; graduate French Culinary Institute. Her recipes will tantalize your taste buds.

We could all use a little luck with the coming of the New Year. In America, particularly the American South, that often means sitting down to a bowl of black eyed peas. As the name suggests, the legume that resembles a small eye with a black pupil, is often cooked with bacon, ham hock, or fatback, then served alongside cooked greens. This New Year's tradition symbolizes both good luck and monetary wealth. Black eyed peas for good luck have manifested themselves in a couple of quintessential American dishes: Hoppin’ John and Poor Man’s Caviar.

The first is a dish of black eyed peas cooked with rice; the latter a side dish of black eyed peas marinated in vinaigrette and served cold. Both have become American classics.

With a rich assortment of black eyed pea dishes unique to the States, you might think that the New Year’s Day tradition was born here. Not so. In fact, you would have to go back to a Babylonian text from 500 BC to find the first written reference to eating black eyed peas for good luck. It was alongside beets, leeks, and dates that black eyed peas were established as an essential New Year’s Day food to symbolize good luck on the table.

Since the tradition of eating black eyed peas for luck comes from the Middle East about 2,500 years ago, it is no surprise then that the origins of the crop are not American but African. The bean is widely cultivated in Africa, the Mediterranean and throughout much of South Asia. It was settlers and the slave trade that brought black eyed peas first to the West Indies and then eventually to the American South. Black eyed peas then became a saving grace for the American South, particularly during the Civil War, as they were often left behind by Northern soldiers who thought of them as nothing more than animal feed. A good source of calcium, Vitamin A, folate, carbohydrates and protein, black eyed peas likely helped many Southerners survive the long war years.

With such a diverse array of cultures using black eyed peas, it is no surprise that the preparations of the peas can widely vary. In India the peas can be cooked with any number of spices from garam masala, to cumin, coriander, even coconut for a mildly curried dish of legumes. In Greece they are often cooked with greens and vegetables, while in Colombia they are made into a fritter that is often eaten for breakfast. And lest they not find their way into every course, in Vietnam black eyed peas are the main ingredient of a dessert in which sweetened peas are served with sticky rice.

Even though black eyed peas are eaten all over the world, not every culture has adopted the tradition of black eyed peas for good luck. It appears that in America, the tradition was brought in the 1730s by Sephardic Jewish settlers to the American South who carried on the Babylonian tradition of eating black eyed peas on New Year’s for good luck. From there, the tradition along with the peas, have been a staple of American soul food cooking.

The tradition is a great one but after a lifetime of eating black eyed peas cooked with ham hocks it might be time to spice things up a bit. The Indian use of the beans makes a flavorful main course or side dish that is appropriate for vegetarians and meat eaters alike. Some basic spices such as coriander, cumin, curry, and chili peppers can liven up a dish of beans, tomatoes, and mushrooms that is otherwise not unlike that basic Southern dish of black eyed peas. Served alongside some greens and rice, you have all the staples of a wholesome meal, drawing on a world of cultures, and hopefully a lot of good luck.

Serves/Makes: 6

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• OR
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 2 dried small red chilies
• 1 medium onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 8 ounces crimini mushrooms, cut in half or quarters
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cans (12 ounce size) black eyed peas drained and rinsed (or use same amount of fresh black eyed peas)
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• salt and pepper
• rice