Crockpot Black Eyed Peas Recipe

Best Crockpot black eyed peas with ham or slow cooker ham hocks. Homemade tender peas and meat served as a soup or a hearty meal with a side of bread. Make it for good luck in the New Year but can be enjoyed all year long too of course!

Black Eyed Peas with Ham Hocks

We have made black eyed peas and ham in our pressure cooker before and that was great. If you don’t have that machine though, a slow cooker works well too. This has a huge variety of ways you can tweak it. Keep it vegetarian like the base instructions show you, or add meat if you like.

I think our favorite way if I don’t have leftovers after Easter or Christmas is to use ham hocks in the bottom. With those since they are already smoked you don’t need any other seasonings, really.

Let’s talk a little bit about slow cooking shall we?? First off I have a few different varieties and I love them all. Each one has an occasion to be used like….

1. This is my favorite 6 quart programmable one with a locking lid so it’s great for bringing to a potluck too.
2. I prefer not to use liners, but rather just spray olive oil inside before adding my food for easier cleanups.

Let me give you a peek of my pretty thang I bought recently. It goes with my kitchen so I can just leave it out on the countertop all the time. 😉

Crockpot Black Eyed Peas and Sausage

Another option is to buy a kielbasa at the store. I like the Johnsonville smoked style. Cut it into dials or those pieces in half like half moons. Throw them in at the beginning so they swell and soak up the flavors in the broth and seasonings. Easy peasy way to make it a hearty meal vs. just a side dish.

I have added grains into the mix at the end with Black Eyed Peas and Rice. This is a great idea if you want to amp it up and make it more like a meal vs. a side dish.

During the wintertime when it is quite chilly outside you probably are looking for comfort food meals. Something warm you can pair with some dinner rolls, and bam..dinner is complete. This is also served as a New Years dinner for good luck in the new year! It’s a great pantry item recipe too using dry beans you have on hand.

During other parts of the year when I don’t have leftovers I can still make this by picking up a ham hock at the store. These are usually super cheap since it’s usually discarded.

Ingredients

1. Diced ham or ham bone
2. Bag of dry black eyed peas
3. Beef or chicken broth
4. Water to thin it out
5. Onions diced
6. Salt and pepper
7. Garlic powder

with Collard Greens

You could push greens into the liquid halfway thru. My biggest suggestion for the ultimate outcome though is to make collard greens in slow cooker number 2 if you have more than one. Some like to add large chunks of bell peppers and/or carrots too.

If you don’t you can use your Foodi or make Instant Pot collard greens with it. Using leftover ham it makes prep even easier. I dice that up and remove any fat, then throw it right in. You won’t need a lot of additional seasonings in this case.

Do black eyed peas need to be soaked?

When cooking Crock pot black eyed peas there is no need to soak the peas beforehand. Since they’re slow cooked all day long with a really lengthy cooking time, they’ll soften quite nicely without this added step.

• It is not recommended to cook on high because everything needs time to get tender and the meat to fall off the bone.
• If making on the stovetop, put peas in a large pot and cover them with about 4 inches of water. Soak them overnight, then drain the water and rinse. Cook as directed.

You could alternatively add precooked and diced smoked turkey pieces if you wanted. This is really versatile as far as the choice of meat and amount of seasonings you choose to add.

If you love the flavors of liquid smoke, add a bit of that too! I tend to add salt and black pepper at the end as well to taste. Even though they were stirred into the mix you may want a bit more.

How to serve

If I make the dish above it is pretty much a full meal and usually don’t feel as though I need a side dish. If you want to amp it up, you can make slow cooker Hoppin John for New Year’s Day. Here are a few suggestions if you feel you need something a bit more though:

1. Pull apart bread is semi homemade and always a winner.
2. This is our best beer bread recipe to follow.
3. Here’s our easy roll recipe everyone loves.
4. Air fryer vegetables go with just about everything if you want more greens.

If you want to make it quicker you should try our Instant Pot Hoppin’ John recipe too. With a few additional ingredients it is really popular year round but especially at the beginning of each year.

• Crockpot Italian wedding soup is excellent.
• Make a batch of Crockpot bbq beef for sliders tomorrow night.
• Our Crockpot ham and beans is a healthy choice.
• Slow cooker Hawaiian chicken is a homemade and healthy meal too.

You can print recipe below and keep it handy for this time and in the future.Whether you’re making this after Christmas or for good luck, Happy New Years to all of you!