A Comforting Tradition {New Year’s Day Recipe}

New Year’s Day Pork Roast, Black-Eyed Peas, & Collard Greens

Words by Justin Butts, Recipe by Kayla Butts, & Photos by Rachel Benavides

It’s tradition to eat pork, black-eyed peas, and collard greens for luck on New Year’s Day. But how did these particular foods become the lucky symbols of the New Year?

The luck in black-eyed peas can be traced to Savannah, Georgia, near the end of the Civil War. Union General Tecumseh Sherman, in his famous March to the Sea, captured Savannah on December 21, 1864. Sherman’s troops burned all the food and provisions of Savannah before leaving town.
On New Year’s Day, the residents of Savannah crawled out of their hiding places in the forests and swamps to find their city a smoking ruin and all of their food destroyed.

But the invading army did not destroy the stores of black-eyed peas. According to legend, the Union soldiers mistakenly believed that black-eyed peas were animal fodder, and since they had taken all the Southern livestock, there was no need to burn the black-eyed peas.

So, on New Year’s Day, 1865, the survivors of Savannah huddled around their fires and ate the only food left to them. The story of those lucky, life-saving black-eyed peas was handed down to the younger generations, a story of humility and grace, until it became folklore.

The tradition of serving pork on New Year’s Day was born in the days before refrigeration, when farmers butchered their hogs in the fall at the first sign of the cold weather. They salted the pork and stored it in cold cellars for winter.

In lean years, in times of depression and want, the pork did not last until the New Year. To be out of pork so early in winter was a bad omen, but it was good luck to have a pork roast on New Year’s Day: a sign of bountiful times to come.

Collard greens are a cold-weather vegetable. The frost that kills other crops in the field only makes collards sweeter. Poor farmers, harvesting their greens in the winter wind, could count them like money and dream of riches in the New Year.

These humble foods are a tradition because they remind us how lucky we are, in any year, to eat well on New Year’s Day and express gratitude for the years to come.

Fresh Pork Roast

Prep time: 7 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 8-12 hours
Cook time: 20 minutes per pound

Ingredients:
Fresh Pork Roast, 3 to 5 pounds
(picnic, Boston butt, or ham)
½ c. salt
2 t. fresh thyme, stemmed
2 t. fresh rosemary, stemmed
and minced
2 t. coarsely ground pepper
1 t. dried bay leaves, crushed
pinch ground cloves
3 garlic cloves, sliced

Directions: Stir salt in 6 cups water until it dissolves. Submerge roast, cover with plastic wrap, and brine in the refrigerator overnight.
Approximately two hours prior to desired mealtime, preheat oven to 325°F. Remove roast from brine and pat dry with paper towels. Combine rub ingredients in a small bowl. Cut several slits into roast, approximately 1” deep using a steak knife. Insert garlic into prepared slits. Massage rub into roast. Place roast into a large pot (Dutch oven is best) and add ½ cup water to the bottom of the pot. Cook uncovered for approximately 20 minutes per pound or until internal temperature reaches 145°F or higher, depending on how well-done you prefer the pork to be cooked.

Black-Eyed Peas

Prep time: 10 minutes
Inactive prep time: 8 hours
Cooking time: 1 hour

Ingredients:
1 lb. dried black-eyed peas
½ lb. fresh bacon, chopped
1 medium onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 T. cayenne pepper sauce
4 c. chicken or vegetable stock
2 bay leaves
1 ½ c. fresh cilantro, diced
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions: Soak peas prior to cooking according to package directions. If peas are bought fresh from a farmer, there is no need to soak. Drain and rinse peas, and remove any undesirable pieces.

Place half of chopped bacon into a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Brown until desired crispness is achieved. Remove prepared bacon, add onion along with remaining bacon, cooking 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for an additional 60 seconds. Add cayenne pepper sauce and peas, stirring until coated. Add stock and bay leaves, and heat until boiling. Reduce heat, cover peas, and simmer for approximately 30 minutes. Add cilantro and season to taste. Serve peas topped with crisp bacon.

Collard Greens

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour

Ingredients:
½ lb. bacon, roughly
chopped
½ large sweet onion,
chopped
1 ½ t. crushed red pepper
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 bunches collard greens
(about 6 c.), rinsed,
stemmed, and roughly
chopped
2 c. low-sodium, low-fat
chicken stock, with one
cup extra on hand
Sea salt to taste

Directions: Sauté the bacon, onions, and pepper flakes in a large pot over medium-high heat.  Heat until onions become translucent and bacon begins to brown.  Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add collards, chicken stock, and salt to taste. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes or up to two hours.