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Easy Black-Eyed Pea Soup for New Year’s Good Luck

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This hearty, smoky black-eyed pea soup is a New Year’s tradition that brings good luck and incredible flavor. Made with simple ingredients like dried peas, a ham hock, and aromatic vegetables, it’s a comforting one-pot meal that’s perfect for a crowd and even better the next day.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 large yellow onion, diced (about 2 cups)
  • 3 celery stalks, diced
  • 3 carrots, peeled and diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
  • 1 pound dried black-eyed peas, rinsed and picked over
  • 1 meaty smoked ham hock (about 12–16 ounces)
  • 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 2 bay leaves
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • Optional for serving: hot sauce, chopped fresh parsley, crusty bread

Instructions

  1. Sauté the aromatics: Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the diced onion, celery, and carrots. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 8-10 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and the onion is translucent.
  2. Add the garlic and spices: Stir in the minced garlic, smoked paprika, dried thyme, and cayenne (if using). Cook for another minute until fragrant.
  3. Add the peas and ham hock: Pour in the rinsed black-eyed peas and place the ham hock in the center of the pot. Stir to coat the peas in the seasoned vegetables.
  4. Pour in the broth: Add the chicken broth and bay leaves. The liquid should cover the peas and ham hock by about an inch. If not, add a splash more broth or water.
  5. Bring to a boil, then simmer: Turn the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low, cover, and let it simmer gently for about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, until the peas are tender but still hold their shape and the ham hock is very tender.
  6. Remove the ham hock: Using tongs, carefully lift the ham hock out of the pot and place it on a cutting board. Let it cool for a few minutes until safe to handle.
  7. Shred the meat: Once cool enough, pull the meat off the bone, discarding the skin, fat, and bone. Shred the meat into bite-sized pieces.
  8. Return the meat to the pot: Stir the shredded ham hock meat back into the soup. Taste and season with salt and pepper, starting with 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
  9. Serve: Ladle the soup into bowls. Serve with hot sauce, fresh parsley, and crusty bread if desired.

Notes

Don’t soak the peas; just rinse them. Salt at the end to avoid over-salting from the ham hock. Skim any foam that rises during the first 20 minutes of simmering. For a thicker soup, mash about a cup of the peas against the side of the pot before adding the meat back in. This soup is even better the next day.

Nutrition

Keywords: black-eyed pea soup, New Year's soup, ham hock soup, Southern soup, lucky soup, easy soup recipe

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