Happy New Year!!!  In my family, that always meant black eyed peas, greens and corn bread.  I decided to do Instant Pot black eyed peas and collard greens this year.  It is so easy and tasty you’ll probably find yourself whipping it up throughout the year – I know I will!

This is one of three collard greens recipes I’ve posted this week.  Also check out:

Collard greens salad with avocado and citrus

Bacon, egg and collard greens

The meaning behind traditional New Year’s Day foods

My grandma used to say the black eyed peas were for health, the greens were for money and the corn bread was to represent coins.  A quick Google search just taught me it’s actually all about the money:  peas for  pennies, greens for cash, golden corn bread for coins.

I’m trying to get back into the swing of NSNG eating (no sugar no grain), so I’m skipping the cornbread this year.  I’ll just eat extra greens since the cash is the important part, right?

We usually had cabbage growing up, but I’m all about the collard greens now.  Instant Pot collard greens makes it easy to have them anytime.

Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas and Collard Greens

 

You can add a smoked turkey leg instead of the ham hock if you prefer. You can also substitute the chicken stock for veggie stock and leave out the meat altogether for vegetarian option.  My daughter likes slices of kielbasa thrown in at the end.  The hot is so hot there’s no need to bring it back up to pressure again once you toss them in.  They’ll heat up quickly from the heat of the beans and greens.

Instant Pot Collard Greens

Just want Instant Pot collard greens?  You can do that, too!  First put everything (greens, broth, seasoning, onion, ham hock if you want it) in the pot.  Then set it on manual for two minutes. Once the time is up, do a quick release.  Are the greens tender enough for you?   If not, simply switch to saute mode until they are.

My family would gather at my aunt and uncle’s on New Year Day.  They have several acres of land and we’d sit around a fire, make s’mores, lounge in hammocks, walk over to see the neighbor’s horses and FEAST.  Black eyed peas were a must.  My mom and grandma always made cabbage with it, but a family friend would bring collard greens.  That’s when I fell in love with collards!  I’m really happy I can quickly make Instant Pot black eyed peas and collard greens now.

Enjoy and best wishes in 2019!