Creole Black-Eyed Peas And Rice (Recipe)

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups dried black-eyed peas

1/4 pound salt pork, chopped

1 pound fully cooked smoked sausage, sliced

1 1/2 cups chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped green onion

1/2 cup chopped green sweet pepper

1/2 cup snipped parsley

1/2 cup tomato sauce

1 clove garlic, minced

1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed

1/8 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed

Few dashes bottled hot pepper sauce

3 cups hot cooked rice (1 cup uncooked)

Steps

1. Rinse the black-eyed peas and place them in a 4 1/2-quart Dutch oven.  Add the 4 cups cold water.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Cover and let stand for 1 hour.  Drain and rinse the peas.

2. Return the peas to the Dutch oven.  Add the salt pork.  Add 3 cups water or enough to cover the peas.  Cover and simmer for 45 minutes.

3. Stir in the sausage, onion, green onion, green sweet pepper, parsley, tomato sauce, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, oregano, thyme and hot pepper sauce.

4. Bring the mixture  to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, over low heat for 45 minutes.  Serve over the hot cooked rice.

Tips:

Use a sharp knife to cut away the rind on the salt pork before chopping it.  You can substitute chopped bacon for the salt pork in this recipe.

Black-eyed peas are small, oval and cream colored, with a black oval "eye" that has a cream-colored dot in the center.  Also known as cowpeas, black-eyed peas have a mealy texture and an earthy flavor.  For this recipe, if you want the peas to retain their shape, don't soak them before cooking.  Do rinse them, however, by placing the peas in a sieve and holding them under running  water.

One cup uncooked rice will yield 3 cups cooked rice.

This recipe is easily doubled if you need to serve a crowd.

From : America's Best-Loved Community Recipes