| Eric's Lucky Black-eyed Peas
"Eric Gironda of Phoenix won an Arizona Republic cooking contest with this recipe back in the '80s when I was working at the newspaper," Bauer said. "Warning: They're spicy."
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion-chopped
- 1 teaspoon oil
- 2 pounds dry black-eyed peas
- 2 pounds smoked ham hocks (or 3 large)
- 1 ½ pounds of good quality smoked sausage
- 10 large garlic cloves (or 20 small)
- 2 large bay leaves
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper sauce (or less, to taste)
- 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper (or less to taste)
- Salt to taste
- Heat oil in large soup pot and brown chopped onion. Set aside.
- Sort peas carefully to remove stones and dirt, rinse well. Dump peas in pot with onion; add ham hocks, bay leaves, parsley, cayenne, black pepper (don't use pre-ground pepper), Tabasco sauce and half of the garlic. Cover with water: cook on high until just boiling, and turn down heat to low, to simmer. Add water as necessary to keep covered. Stir occasionally.
- Cut smoked sausage into ¾-inch slices, then cut slices in quarters.
- After peas have simmered for about 1½ hours, remove ham hocks and set aside to cool.
- Add sausage and remaining garlic. (It is not necessary to cup up garlic. It'll fall apart—and your hands won't smell.)
- When ham hocks have cooled, remove and discard skin. Remove meat from bones and gristle from meat. Shred meat and return to pot. Return large bones to pot, cook on low for another hour or until peas melt in you mouth.
- Keep them covered with water and stir as needed to prevent sticking. Peas should be like a bean soup with plenty of liquid, or you can smash up a few peas to create a smooth, thick consistency. Add salt if needed. Remove bay leaves, tear in half, and return to peas. Remove bones.
Serve with a dash of vinegar (malt if possible) and steamed white rice, to cool the palate (optional).
Makes 30 ½-cup servings
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