RECIPE: my REC: Hoppin' John

RECIPE:
R

rvb

Well-known member
i've never fixed this exactly this way cause, as goes my tweaking wont, i subbed parsnips for the carrots. this soup would be fine with onions instead of leeks. there are no bell peppers cause i don't much like em and laur finds em oogie.

this recipe is based heavily on hoppin' in upstate ny joyce's recipe and i got the idea for the herbs from mr. prudhomme (as interpreted by la's own Steve2).

Hoppin' John

New Year's Tradition from the American south to bring you good luck.size>

3 small ham hocks

4 cups water

11 oz bag fresh black eyed peas

½ cup leeks – chopped and lightly sautéed

¼ cup celery – finely sliced

¼ cup carrots – finely sliced

2 tsp basil

2 tsp thyme

3 bay leaves

1 cup uncooked long grained rice

Cover the ham hocks with water, bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for a few hours. Let the stock cool and refrigerate til the fat congeals. Remove the fat – you may want to save some to sauté the veggies. Warm the stock a bit and strain. Separate the meat and reserve.

Sauté the leeks, celery, and carrots lightly in 3 tbs olive oil or the reserved fat and add to the stock along with the herbs. Simmer peas in the stock for 30 minutes. Add the rice and simmer for an additional 30 minutes. Serve with your favorite greens. They can be added to the hoppin’ john for a one-dish meal. Cornbread is nice.

 
a hock question....

when i was shopping for the ham hocks, i found a choice between sceawny smoked hocks and meaty fresh ones. i directed a coupla "ugh"s at the fresh ones and bought the smoked.

i wonder now if i should have gone the other way.

any ideas from the southernophiles here?

 
A ham hock is smoked by definition, don't know as I've ever seen fresh hocks, probably

just wasn't looking. Were they called pork hocks or were they the feet? And yes, a ham hock is only a shadow of it's former self, they used to be so nice and meaty. Your black-eyed peas sound delicious.

Edited to say I guess I should have said smoked or cured, not all ham is smoked.

 
I did some googling, evidently they sometimes market them as 'ham' hocks, even when they are fresh.

That's just wrong to me. If they are fresh, they should be called pork hocks. I wonder if this is a regional thing? Would love to hear what other people with southern roots think, what's your definition of ham hock?

 
Here in So Cal, they are now called pork hocks, but they seem identical

to what my Dad called Ham Hocks- They are definitely smoked as they have that "smoked Meat nitrite " warning label on them- This year I just did my blackeyed peas with side meat and they were delicious- I just cringe to see two tiny tiny "pork" hocks going for $5!!!!!

 
Tammy, take the 605 down to the third workd (Long Beach). They're much cheaper here.

But they really are dinky.

I think the call them "smoked pork hocks" because someone might sue them for not including a ham in the package--kind of like those "Serving suggestion" disclaimers you see. As if a box of crackers might actually contain the pictured selection of toppings.

 
so which would you use, the smoked or the fresh??????????

yeah - i know - it doesn't trip over your tongue like "the lady or the tiger".

 
I buy them fairly often even though, like tongue, the price has skyrocketed. Here, I've always

called them, pork hocks, if they were fresh and smoked pork hocks, otherwise. I've never heard of them as ham hocks.

I would definitely have used the smoked variety and this sounds like a terrific pot. I"ve just discovered a meat kiosk that sells only smoked meat and will definitely try this.

I make a version of this with fresh "pork hocks", using pea beans and little onions (that I can't get in cans any longer). We love it, but I'll bet it is better with smoked meat.

By the way, if we can find tongue now, it's $9 a pound. Hocks are still about $3 for 2. And the trotters, which is what 'we' call the feet, seem to be difficult to find now too.

 
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