Hoppin' John

Make this on New Year's day to get  you annual dose of black-eyed peas. This recipe works well and is adapted from Cooks Country's recipe. Good Luck!

Ingredients
6 slices bacon, chopped
1 and 1/2 pounds boneless ham (or ham steak)
1 yellow onion
3 celery ribs
3 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
1/2 tsp dried thyme
4 cups low sodium chicken broth (Swanson's is good)
2 16-oz bags frozen black-eyed peas (one can usually find pict-sweet brand)
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups long grain rice
3 green onions, thinly sliced

Directions

1. Cook bacon in Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, about 10 minutes. Transfer bacon to paper towels to drain. Pour off all but one tablespoon of fat from the Dutch oven and brown the ham steak. Cut it in half if you necessary to get it to fit. About 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a cutting board and let cool. Once cooled, cut into 1/2-inch planks. 
2. Add onion and celery to the Dutch oven and cook for about 8 minutes until they are soft. Add garlic and thyme and stir for about 30 seconds. 
3. Add broth, black-eyed peas, bay leaves, and browned ham and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, until beans are  just tender, about 20 minutes. Remove the ham and cut into 1/2-inch pieces. 
4. Rinse the rice in a fine mesh strainer (really important; don't skip this) until water runs clear. About a minute. Drain the rice and add to the Dutch oven. 
5. Place a piece of aluminum foil  onto the surface of the surface of the simmering ingredients. Simmer covered until broth is absorbed and rice is tender, about 20 minutes, stirring and re-positioning the foil at about the 7- and 15-minute marks.
6. Off heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Rice should still be moist, but tender. Fluff rice with fork. Stir in scallions, bacon, and ham. 

Tips: If you have pre-cooked bacon on hand, you can use that and some of the bacon fat you saved instead of cooking the bacon while making this recipe.