Ingredients
Method
- Prep. Remove the stem, core, and seeds from the green bell pepper. Coarsely chop the pepper.
- Cut the ends off of the onion, remove the skin, and coarsely chop.
- Press the garlic with a garlic press or coarsely chop.
- Cook. Get a large pot hot and add the oil. Add the ham hock, onion, green pepper, garlic, pepper flakes, and the bay leaf. If you can't find a ham hock, you can use bacon, just skip the vegetable oil and start by cooking the bacon in the bottom of the pot and pour off all the bacon grease except 2 tablespoons.
- Drain and rinse the black-eyed peas.
- When the onions are limp, add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add the beans, bring back to a boil and dial it back to a simmer quickly. Do not boil for more than a minute or two. Simmer for at least an hour.
- Remove the bay leaf and if you use ham hocks, cut off the meat, add it to the pot, and discard the bones and skin.
- Add the rice and simmer with the cover on for about 25 minutes or until the rice is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Serve. Serve with salt and pepper at table. Hoppin John gets a lift from fresh ground pepper at the table.
Notes
About the beans: Click here to read our article, The Science of Beans, for tips on working with beans and equivalents for dry, canned, and cooked beans. If you plan to use dried beans, follow the instructions there for preparing them.
About the salt. Remember, kosher salt is half the concentration of table salt so if you use table salt, use half as much. Click here to read more about salt and how it works.