Bringing in the New Year Right

Hoppin’ John and collard greens are an old African American and Southern traditional food for New Year’s Day. They are seen as good luck, and eating them will bring prosperity in the New Year. Hoppin’ John is a savory stew of black eyed peas and rice seasoned traditionally with ham hocks, fatback pork, or more often in this more healthy age, smoked turkey wings. Collard greens, or collids in my neck of Brooklyn, are also seasoned with salted and smoked pork or turkey. There used to be lots of flatbed trucks that sat on major intersections in black neighborhoods, selling salt pork, collard greens, Southern cured hams, pecans and other Southern delicacies. The trucks came up from South Carolina, Georgia and other states brimming with goodies, which disappeared fast in communities with strong ties to the South. As the Times reports, there are less and less these days, as people’s food shopping habits change, the economy fizzles, and old ties dissolve. My Mom, who was from South Carolina, made the best greens, and peas and rice, as we called it growing up. I can make them, but they are not the same as hers. Hers were much better. These foods are filling and nutritious and cheap, a pot of each can last days. Prosperity can last all year and beyond. Get cooking, and Happy New Year.
Brooklyn’s Flavor Route to the South [NY Times]
Brooklyn Style Collard Greens [NY Times]
Brooklyn Style Hoppin’ John [NY Times]
Photo:eatcheapeatwelleatup.com