Chef Suzanne Barr’s Turkey Hoppin’ John recipe is out of this world tasty. Hoppin’ John is a popular dish in the South. It is traditionally served on New Year’s Day, and has been since the 1800’s for good luck. The dish, traditionally, is made with pork, black eyed peas and rice. According to history.com, the origins of the name aren’t clear:
“Some say an old, hobbled man called Hoppin’ John became known for selling peas and rice on the streets of Charleston. Others say slave children hopped around the table in eager anticipation of the dish. Most food historians think the name derives from a French term for dried peas, “pois pigeons.”
Suzanne Barr did her own take on the traditional dish using turkey necks in place of pork. Why not create a new tradition in your home and serve this dish on New Year’s Day?
Serves: 6
Prep time: 1 day + 15 min
Cooking Time: 45 min
Ingredients:
-2 cups dried red kidney beans or dried black eyed peas
-6 – 8 cups water
-1 bay leaf
-2 sprigs of fresh thyme
-1 turkey neck
-½ scotch bonnet pepper
-1 Tbsp salt
-2 cups roasted kaboucha squash
-1 tsp olive oil
-1 Tbsp honey
-2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
-2 cups roughly chopped kale
-¼ cup creamed coconut
-1 cup diced tomatoes
Garnish
-½ cup chopped green onions
Directions:
1) Place 2 cups of beans in a bowl and cover with water to allow to soak overnight.
2) The next day, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Drain beans yielding 2 cups of soaked beans.
3) Add beans, bay leaf, thyme, turkey neck, scotch bonnet and salt to a stock pot or dutch oven and cover with 6 – 8 cups of water. Bring pot to boil and cover pot with lid and turn stovetop to medium, allowing beans to cook until tender.
4) Peel and cut squash into ½ inch cubes and toss with olive oil and pinch of salt and roast on parchment lined oven safe tray in oven until tender.
5) Once cooked, toss roasted squash in a bowl with honey and chopped fresh parsley and place to the side.
6) Wash and remove leaves from stalks of kale, roughly chop kale and place to the side.
7) Remove turkey neck, scotch bonnet, bay leaf, thyme stalks, from pot and pull turkey meat from neck and discard bones. Add creamed coconut and chopped tomato to the pot and allow to reduce creating a thick sauce. Add kale and squash to pot and re-season if necessary. Garnish with green onions.
Recipe courtesy of Think Turkey.
