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New Year's Day Meal I Cook Every January 1st for Luck
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items Every year I almost wing it on January 1st and every year the meal falls flat. After a decade of trial and error with black eyed peas, collard greens, cornbread, and all the Southern luck traditions, I finally locked in the exact products that make t...
Sections
5
Black Eyed Peas and Hoppin' John Staples
Collard Greens and Braised Greens Supplies
Cornbread That Actually Holds Together
Smoked Pork and Protein for the Table
Drinks and Dessert to Close Out the Spread
Black Eyed Peas and Hoppin' John Staples
The first few years I tried making Hoppin' John from scratch, it tasted like wet cardboard. Turns out I was using the wrong peas and skipping the flavor base entirely. These fixed everything.
Soak these overnight and they cook up creamy, not mushy. Canned ones always gave me that weird metallic aftertaste, so I switched to dried three years ago and never looked back. Stock up because they sell out fast the last week of December.
IBERIA, Blackeye Peas, 16 fl oz, Plastic
Use this for your Hoppin' John base. Regular rice turned to paste every time I mixed it with the peas and broth. This one keeps its shape and soaks up all that smoky flavor without falling apart. Perfect if you're feeding more than four people.
Zatarain's, Rice, Enriched Parboiled Long Grain Rice
Toss a handful into the pot about 20 minutes before serving. Before I found this, I was buying a whole ham hock and spending an hour fishing out bones. This gives you the same salty, smoky punch with zero hassle.
Smithfield Anytime Favorites Diced Ham, 8 oz
Keep this in your cabinet for January 1st mornings when you forgot to buy fresh onions. Happened to me twice. A couple tablespoons rehydrate in the pot and nobody can tell the difference. Saves a grocery run on a holiday.
McCormick Kosher Minced Onions, 2.0 oz Bottle
Shake this into your black eyed peas about halfway through cooking. My grandmother used to just salt everything and wonder why it was bland. Two shakes of this and suddenly people are asking for your recipe. Works on literally every dish on the table...
Tony Chachere's® Original Creole Seasoning, 8 oz
Collard Greens and Braised Greens Supplies
Collard greens represent money in the new year, but mine used to taste bitter and stringy. Took me five January 1sts to figure out the right products and technique. Now they're the first dish that disappears.
Grab these frozen bags if you don't want to spend 30 minutes washing and chopping fresh bunches. They cook down just as tender and you skip the grit. For anyone short on prep time, this is the move.
Pictsweet Farms Southern Classics Chopped Collard Greens 14 Oz
Braise your greens in this instead of plain water. I used to just boil collards in salted water and they tasted like nothing. Swapping in broth was the single biggest upgrade to my entire New Year's spread. Seriously, try it once.
Swanson Chicken Broth, 32 oz Carton
Render a few slices before you add the greens to the pot. That bacon fat is where all the flavor lives. Thin bacon burns too fast and doesn't give you enough drippings. This thick cut holds up and gives you crispy bits to crumble on top.
Wright Brand Hickory Real Wood Smoked Thick Cut Sliced
Splash about two tablespoons into the pot in the last five minutes. Cuts through all that richness and makes the greens taste bright instead of heavy. My uncle taught me this trick and it's the reason people actually finish their greens at my house.
Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar, 16 oz
Use this right at the end, fresh ground over each bowl. Regular garlic powder always tasted dusty to me. This grinder gives you actual garlic flavor with the salt built in, so you're not reaching for three different shakers.
Morton Healthy Seasoned Garlic Sea Salt, 8.5 oz
Cornbread That Actually Holds Together
Nothing ruins the meal like cornbread that crumbles into dust the second you pick it up. I went through at least four different mixes before landing on the right combo of products. Now my cornbread gets more compliments than the main course.
Pour this into a cast iron skillet with a little butter and you get that crispy edge everyone fights over. Fancy mixes always came out too cakey for me. This one tastes like actual cornbread, not corn-flavored cake. Dirt cheap too.
Martha White Yellow Cornbread Mix, 6.5 oz Pouch
Preheat this with butter in the oven before you pour the batter in. That sizzle is what gives you the golden crust. I baked cornbread in a regular pan for years and it never had that crunch. This skillet changed everything about my bread.
Lodge, Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet, 10.25 inch, Black
Drizzle this on warm cornbread straight from the skillet. Butter alone is fine, but honey on top makes people close their eyes while they chew. Keep it near the table because everyone will reach for it at least twice.
Great Value Honey, 12 oz Plastic Bear
Spread this on cornbread and it actually melts instantly instead of tearing the bread apart. Cold hard butter was destroying my slices every year. This one stays soft right out of the fridge, which is exactly what you want on crumbly bread.
Land O Lakes Butter with Canola Oil, Spreadable, 24 oz Tub
Throw one egg into your cornbread batter to hold everything together. Before I started doing this, my cornbread fell apart like sand. One egg gives it structure without making it rubbery. Simple trick that took me way too long to learn.
Great Value Large White Eggs, 12 Count
Smoked Pork and Protein for the Table
Black eyed peas need a serious protein anchor or the whole meal feels like a bunch of side dishes. I tried ham, pork shoulder, and smoked sausage before settling on what actually works without babysitting a smoker all morning.
Slice this into coins and brown them in a skillet before adding to your peas or serving alongside. Regular smoked sausage tastes rubbery to me. This one has a snap when you bite it and a smokiness that fills the whole kitchen. Worth hunting down.
Conecuh Sausage Smoked Sausage, 16 oz
Keep this in the oven low and slow while you focus on the sides. No glaze, no fuss. Just slice and serve. I used to stress about a bone-in ham every year until I realized nobody cared about presentation, they just wanted tender ham on their plate.
HORMEL ® CURE 81 ® Classic Boneless Sliced Ham
Brush this on your ham or pork chops about an hour before cooking. Gives you that sweet, tangy bark without making your own glaze from scratch. My first year using this, three people asked if I'd been smoking meat all day. Nope, just Stubb's.
Stubbs Pork Marinade 12 oz (Pack of 6)
Set this on the table next to the ham for anyone who wants extra sauce. Not everyone will use it, but the people who do will thank you. My brother-in-law puts this on everything and he specifically asks if I have it before he shows up.
Sweet Baby Ray's® Original Barbecue Sauce 18 oz
Fire up the grill if the weather cooperates and smoke your sausage outside. January 1st in the South can be mild enough to grill. Nothing beats that real charcoal flavor on smoked sausage. Grab a bag now because you won't want to run out mid-cook.
Kingsford Original Charcoal Briquettes, 16 lbs
Drinks and Dessert to Close Out the Spread
After all that savory food, you need something sweet and a proper drink to toast the new year one more time. I stopped overcomplicating dessert and picked things people actually finish instead of leaving on the counter.
Pop this at the table right before dessert. Half my family doesn't drink alcohol, so this gives everyone something to toast with that actually feels festive. Kids love it too. Way better than flat juice in a cup.
Martinelli's Sparkling Apple Cider, 4pk, 25.4 fl oz Glass Bottle
Pull this from the freezer, bake it, and nobody will question whether you made it from scratch. My homemade pecan pie failed two years in a row, burnt sugar, runny filling. This one comes out perfect every time and feeds a full table.
Marie Callender's Southern Pecan Pie, Thaw & Enjoy
Pile this on top of pecan pie or sweet potato pie. Sounds simple but it makes the whole dessert feel more generous. Cool Whip is fine but this one actually tastes like cream. Shake it hard first or you'll get a sad little puff.
Reddi-wip Original Whipped Topping Made with Real
Brew a pot of this after the meal. Strong enough to wake everyone up from their food coma but smooth enough that you don't need a ton of sugar. For anyone from Louisiana, this brand hits different. Everyone else, just trust me on it.
Community Coffee Ground 12 oz Café Special
Steep a gallon of sweet tea the night before so it's cold and ready January 1st. No Southern meal is complete without it. Drop in sugar while the water is still warm, add ice in the morning, done. Faster than any recipe you'll find online.
Lipton, Cold Brew Black Tea Bags, Family Size, 22 Count