Textual Chef Textual Chef

Hopping John

A traditional Southern dish of seasoned black-eyed peas, rice, and savory pork simmered together with aromatics.

80 minEasyServes 6420 cal/serving

AmericanDinnerStovetopHigh FiberGluten-FreeNut-FreeDairy-FreeSoy-FreeEgg-FreeShellfish-FreeAlcohol-FreeCorn-Free

Cook this free in the appFree. No download, no account. The screen stays awake and each step can run its own timer.

Ingredients

  • 4 slices bacon, diced
  • 1 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 2 celery stalk, diced
  • 1 medium green bell pepper, diced
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 8 oz smoked ham, diced
  • 1 lb dried black-eyed peas, soaked
  • 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 tbsp Cajun seasoning
  • 1 cup long-grain white rice, uncooked

Instructions

  1. 1

    Render 4 slices diced bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until crispy, then remove bacon and keep grease in pot.

  2. 2

    Add 1 medium diced yellow onion, 2 diced celery stalk, and 1 medium diced green bell pepper to the pot and saute for 5 minutes until soft.

  3. 3

    Stir in 3 minced garlic cloves, 8 oz diced smoked ham, and 1 tbsp Cajun seasoning, cooking for 2 minutes until ham reaches an internal temperature of 145°F.

  4. 4

    Add 1 lb soaked dried black-eyed peas and 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer over low heat for 40 minutes until tender.

  5. 5

    Stir in 1 cup uncooked long-grain white rice, cover, and simmer for another 20 minutes until rice is cooked and broth is absorbed.

Cook this free in the appCooking it now? The app keeps the screen awake and times each step. Free, nothing to install.

Questions

What is Hopping John?

A traditional Southern dish of seasoned black-eyed peas, rice, and savory pork simmered together with aromatics. This reference files it under American dinner: made on the stovetop, rated easy and about 80 minutes start to finish.

What internal temperature should Hopping John reach?

For Hopping John, the target internal temperature is 145 F (about 65 C), given in step 3. A probe thermometer removes the guesswork.

Is there a substitute for Cajun seasoning in Hopping John?

The entry for Hopping John calls for 1 tbsp Cajun seasoning. In its place: Two parts paprika to one part each of garlic powder, onion powder, dried thyme, oregano and cayenne, with salt.

Can I use turkey bacon instead of bacon in Hopping John?

Yes. Turkey bacon renders almost no fat, so add a tablespoon of oil wherever the method counts on the drippings. As written, the entry for Hopping John uses 4 slices bacon, diced.

Is Hopping John gluten-free?

Yes. As written, nothing in the ingredient list for Hopping John is wheat, barley or rye. Gluten hides in packaged goods, so read the label on the broth and the seasoning.

How many calories are in Hopping John?

One serving (the recipe makes 6) is about 420 calories, with 22 g protein, 58 g carbohydrate and 10 g fat, plus 9 g fiber and 680 mg sodium. The figures are estimates computed from the ingredient list.

Which part of Hopping John can be done ahead?

Everything up to step 4. Step 4 is a built-in pause of 40 minutes: "Add 1 lb soaked dried black-eyed peas and 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer over low heat for 40 minutes until tender." Do everything up to that point ahead of time and pick up at step 5 when you are ready to finish.

Serve it with

Cook this free in the app

Textual Chef is 4,530 plain-text recipes, free to read and free to cook from. No account, no paywall, no ads, no life stories. Open this one in the app and each quantity sits inside the step that uses it, so you read once and cook.

Every recipe is curated or public-domain sourced, written to one template and checked before it publishes. Nothing here is a scraped blog post.

Cook this free in the appNo download needed. It opens in your browser. The kitchen tools (planner, shopping list, pantry, import) are $5.33 a month billed annually; the first 30 days are free.

More American entries

All American recipes · All Dinner recipes · All Black-Eyed Peas recipes