I’ve been craving this dish lately; and after reading a few different recipes I came up with my own version that was quite delicious.
I started with about 3/4 of a pound of dried black-eyed peas and ended up adding maybe half of them to the collards.
To make the black-eyed peas:
Bring peas & water to a boil for 2-3 minutes, then turn off heat and soak for an hour. Add 2 bay leaves and 1/2T of salt to the pot, then boil them for another half-hour and drain.
To make the collards:
1 small onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 slices bacon
1 bunch collards, stems removed & sliced (maybe 2 cups?)
1/4c white wine (the bite adds a nice flavor; so if you don’t have wine, try balsamic or even white wine vinegar)
1/2c chicken broth
Cook the bacon in a pan; remove to a paper towel. Add the onions & garlic to the bacon fat and sautee for 10-15 minutes, turning down the heat as the aromatics begin to brown. Remove the cooked aromatics to a dish, leaving behind as much of the fat as you can.
Sautee the collards in the remaining fat for 3-5 minutes. Add the wine & broth and steam for 10-15 minutes. Drain off any remaining liquid and save.
Add to the collards as much of the cooked black-eyed peas and the onion-garlic mixture as you like. Chop the cooked bacon and add to the collards. Season with a bit of pepper to taste; you probably don’t need any salt.
Mix the leftover onion-garlic mixture and leftover broth to the leftover peas, if you like.