Garlicky and Lemony Black-Eyed Pea and Kale Salad

How many of you have New Year’s Day traditions? Christmas, sure. Thanksgiving, yup. Easter, ok. But New Year’s Day? New Year’s Eve gets most of the love and January 1 usually is a day to relax and unwind.

In the Southern US, one New Year’s tradition is to eat black-eyed peas for luck. Apparently, it represents fertility. Eating greens symbolizes wealth and pig represents a link to slavery. All three components are typically eaten together in a dish called Hoppin’ John for a lucky new year.

Personally, any time one eats beans and greens it is a reason to celebrate. I’ll pass on the pig, please.

As the year of the bean concludes (or is just beginning), it is nice to revisit some new finds. My mom introduced me to black-eyed peas when she made them as Mango BBQ Beans. They were much nicer than the kidney beans. Small, yet meaty, they paired well with the sweet and smoky baked beans.

Since then, I have been hankering to cook with them some more. This recipe for garlicky and lemony black-eyed peas and kale was so good Tess included it in both Radiant Health, Inner Wealth and The Two Week Wellness Solution (and on her blog here) and my slightly adapted recipe follows.

If you use canned beans (or peas?), this is a wickedly fast recipe to make. However, I made my own BEPs from scratch. Adding the vegetable broth, bay leaves and onion really boosts the beans since it all gets absorbed by the beans. Combined with the garlic, lemon, and kale, this is a tasty pot of beans that is low in fat but full of flavour. Yes, there are 6 cloves of garlic, but they are cooked and more subdued. You can eat it hot from the pan, but I preferred the chilled leftovers – perfect for lunch on New Year’s Day or your next potluck.

Here’s to a new year filled with beans and greens! 😀

Here are some other recipes with black eyed peas that I’ve had my eye on:

Hoppin’ John from Simply Recipes
Black-Eyed Pea Masala from Fat Free Vegan (we’ve Rob made this [and I ate it] already and it was a gorgeous, subtly spiced dish)
Black-Eyed Pea and Caramelized Onion Salad from Chow
Bulgur and Black-Eyed Pea Salad with tomatoes, Onions and a Pomegranate Dressing from Bon Appetit (looks very similar to my Turkish Bulgur Pomegranate and Almond Salad)
Middle Eastern Black-Eyed Pea Stew from Adaba Foods
Baked BBQ Black-Eyed Peas from Vegan Soul Kitchen
Southwestern Bean Salad with Black Beans, Black-Eyed Peas, Peppers, and Cilantro from Kalyn’s Kitchen
Hottie Black-Eyed Peas and Greens from Appetite for Reduction
Spicy-Smoky Black-Eyed Peas from Plant Powered
Spicy Black-Eyed Peas and Collard Greens from Branny Boils Over
Caribbean Curried Black-Eyed Peas with Plantains from the Post Punk Kitchen
Trinidadian Black-Eyed Pea Soup from Madhur Jaffrey’s World Vegetarian
Creole Black-Eyed Peas from Fat Free Vegan
Pineapple and Red Pepper Salad with Black-Eyed Peas from Fresh365
Cinnamon-Flavoured Black-Eyed Peas from 660 Curries
Black-Eyed Peas and Leeks with Marjoram and Tarragon from 101 Cookbooks
Black-Eyed Pea and Tempeh Beanballs from Appetite for Reduction
Black-Eyed Pea and Barley Stew from What Would Cathy Eat?

This is my submission to Deb for this week’s Souper Sundays and to Ricki’s Wellness Weekend.

Garlicky, Lemony Black Eyed Pea and Kale Salad

1.5 cups dried black eyed peas, soaked in water overnight, then drained [or 2×15 oz cans of black eyed peas, rinsed and drained]
1/2 cup diced onion
3.5 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
4 bay leaves
piece of kombu, optional

2 packed cups kale, thinly sliced
6 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

2 tsp salt
2 tsp nutritional yeast
2 tsp olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 2 lemons)

1. If cooking your own beans, place beans, onion, broth, bay leaves and kombu in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. reduce heat to low and simmer for 45-60 minutes until tender.

2. Once the beans are done, remove the majority of the water (save it for a lovely vegetable broth!), leaving 1/4 cup or so in the pot. Stir in the kale and garlic and cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes, until the kale wilts. Remove from heat.

3. Stir in the salt, nutritional yeast, olive oil and lemon juice. Top with hot sauce (or chili flakes) if you so desire and serve. Personally, I preferred this chilled as leftovers.

Serves 4.