Eleven ingredients and six hours in the slow cooker, plus an overnight soak for the peas.
The rice is cooked separately and served at the edge of the bowl or underneath, so it stays fluffy rather than swelling in the broth.
Why This Recipe Works
- Soaking the dried peas overnight shortens their cooking and helps them cook evenly.
- Fully cooked smoked sausage flavours the whole pot as it heats through.
- Smoked paprika adds a smoky depth that ties the sausage and the greens together.
- Adding the collards for only the last hour braises them dark but keeps some texture.
- Cooking the rice apart stops it drinking up the broth and going soft.
Ingredient Notes
- Dried black-eyed peas
- A pound, sorted, rinsed and soaked overnight in the fridge. They cook through in the slow cooker to tender without falling apart.
- Fully cooked smoked sausage
- Ten ounces, sliced into rounds. Fully cooked is the specification — it only needs to heat through with the peas.
- Collard greens
- Six cups, chopped, and added for the last hour. That is long enough to braise them dark and tender.
- Long-grain white rice
- Three cups cooked, made separately and served alongside or underneath. The title doesn't name it.
How to Make It
Dried peas soaked overnight in the fridge, drained and rinsed
Soak black-eyed peas in plenty of water overnight in the refrigerator; drain and rinse.
Peas, sausage, onion, garlic, broth, paprika and thyme into the cooker
Add peas, fully cooked smoked sausage, onion, garlic, broth, smoked paprika and thyme to a slow cooker.
Cooked on LOW five hours, then collards stirred in
Cook on LOW 5 hours, then stir in collard greens.
About an hour more until the peas are tender and greens dark
Continue cooking about 1 hour, until peas are tender and the collards are dark and fully braised.
Seasoned, served with white rice at the edge or underneath
Season with salt and pepper. Serve the thick brothy stew with cooked long-grain white rice at the edge or underneath.
What Goes In, and When
This is a six-hour recipe with one decision that matters more than any other: when the greens go in. Put collards in at the start and six hours reduces them to a dark slick; this recipe holds them back until hour five. The peas need the opposite - a head start the night before.
The night before
1 lb DRIED BLACK-EYED PEAS, sorted and rinsed
SOAKED IN PLENTY OF WATER OVERNIGHT IN THE REFRIGERATOR, then drained and rinsed. In the fridge rather than on the counter - for safety, keep soaking peas refrigerated.
Hour 0 - into the slow cooker
The soaked peas, 10 oz FULLY COOKED SMOKED SAUSAGE in rounds, 1 medium ONION, 3 GARLIC CLOVES, 6 cups LOW-SODIUM CHICKEN BROTH, 1 tsp SMOKED PAPRIKA, 1/2 tsp DRIED THYME
COOKED ON LOW. The sausage is FULLY COOKED SMOKED SAUSAGE, so it needs only to HEAT THROUGH WITH THE PEAS - six hours does that many times over. Low-sodium broth because the sausage carries salt of its own.
Hour 5
6 cups CHOPPED COLLARD GREENS
STIRRED IN, then cooked ABOUT 1 HOUR more UNTIL PEAS ARE TENDER AND THE COLLARDS ARE DARK AND FULLY BRAISED. Dark and fully braised is what the photograph shows. An hour is enough to get there without losing the leaves entirely.
To serve
1 tsp FINE SALT, 1/2 tsp BLACK PEPPER and 3 cups COOKED LONG-GRAIN WHITE RICE
SEASONED, and the THICK BROTHY STEW SERVED WITH the rice AT THE EDGE OR UNDERNEATH. The rice is LONG-GRAIN WHITE RICE COOKED SEPARATELY. Leftovers are COOLED PROMPTLY.
Success Tips
- Sort the dried peas before soaking; small stones sometimes turn up in the bag.
- Resist adding the collards early, or they will break down completely.
- Taste before salting at the end — the sausage and broth both bring salt.
Serving Ideas
Six bowls of thick brothy black-eyed peas with dark braised collards and rounds of smoked sausage, with long-grain white rice at the edge or underneath.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use canned black-eyed peas?
The recipe is written for dried peas soaked overnight. Canned peas would soften into the broth long before the six hours were up.
What kind of sausage should I use?
A fully cooked smoked sausage, sliced into rounds. It just needs to heat through in the pot with the peas.
Should the rice cook in the slow cooker?
No. Cook long-grain white rice separately and serve it at the edge of the bowl or underneath the stew.
