Hoppin John with Braised Venison Shanks

Hoppin’ John is an amazing Southern American dish with an interesting history. I was raised believing that eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day was the only way to solidify a year’s worth of good luck. As a kid, I was not allowed to end the day without at least a spoonful of black-eyed peas. My family is still very superstitious when it comes to this tradition, but no matter, I now love black-eyed peas as of the yearly spoonfuls.  

Historically, Hoppin’ John is a culmination of the many worlds that contributed to giving the “Old South” its culinary identity. Born in the rice-rich lands of the Carolinas, this dish incorporates rice along with cowpeas, black-eyed peas, or other beans and is flavored with bacon or ham. Following the cookery methods brought to the American South by African slaves, the rice, beans, and broth are cooked together. This method is what made it Hoppin’ John. Most modern methods cook the two separately which I refused to recognize after tasting the result of the steps below. 

I wanted to add a wild game component to this meal. I do not believe that I am the first to think of this as much of the historical American South survived on some sort of wild game meat. I braised the antelope shanks in the slow cooker overnight and used that braising liquid throughout the remainder of the recipe. 

Preparation of the Hoppin’ John is following the traditional preparation as much as I could, except for the addition of the Harvesting Nature Water Fowl Blend. The resulting meal was remarkably balanced and wholesome. I was very happy to share it with my family who gave the meal two thumbs up as they solidified their good luck for the next year. There is nothing like cooking magical food that also pleases the diners. Good Luck and Enjoy!

Oh, there is still time to gain your own luck since you missed New Year’s Day. Cook this up!

Serving Size: 4-6

Time to make: 8-10 hours

Equipment: Large Pan, Slow Cooker, and Dutch Oven/Large Pot

Also works with: Any Wild Game Shanks

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Hoppin John with Braised Venison Shanks

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Recipe by Harvesting Nature Course: Lunch, DinnerCuisine: American, Southern

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

8

hours 

Cooking time

1

hour 

Hoppin’ John is an amazing Southern American dish with an interesting history. I wanted to add a wild game component to this meal. I do not believe that I am the first to think of this as much of the historical American South survived on some sort of wild game meat. Preparation of the Hoppin’ John is following the traditional preparation as much as I could. The resulting meal was remarkably balanced and wholesome.

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Ingredients

• Shanks

• 2 full Antelope shanks

• 1 Tbsp oil

• 1 Tbsp Harvesting Nature Water Fowl Blend

• 1 tsp salt

• 4 cups beef stock

• 3 garlic cloves, smashed

• 1 celery stalk, chopped

• Hoppin’ John
  

• ½ lbs of dried black-eyed peas

• 3 strips of bacon, chopped

• ½ cup diced onion

• ½ cup diced bell pepper

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 1 celery stalk, diced

• 3 cups of the reserved braising liquid

• 2 Tbsp Harvesting Nature Water Fowl Blend

• 2 tsp salt

• 1 cup of Carolina Gold Rice, rinsed and drained

• Thinly sliced scallions for garnish
  

Preparation

• For the Shanks
• Bring a large pan to high heat on the stove. Rub the shanks with oil, the Harvesting Nature Water Fowl Blend, and salt. Once the pan is hot, sear each side of the shanks
• Turn on the slow cooker and set it to LOW. Place the seared shanks inside and add the stock, garlic, and celery. Allow the mixture to cook for 8 hours or until the meat falls off the bone. I cooked mine overnight.
• Once cooked, remove the meat from the slow cooker and set it aside. Strain and reserve the braising liquid for the next steps.
• For the Hoppin’ John
• Place the black-eyed peas into a bowl and cover them with water. Allow them to sit while you complete the following steps.
• Bring the Dutch over to medium-high heat and stir in the chopped bacon. Brown the bacon and then remove from bacon from the pan, leaving the grease behind. 
• Stir in the onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic. Cook, frequently stirring, until the onion turns opaque. 
• Drain the remaining water from the black-eyed peas. Stir the peas into the pot.
• Add three cups of the braising liquid from the antelope shanks, the Harvesting Nature Water Fowl Blend, and salt.
• Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and allow to simmer for 45-60 minutes or until the peas begin to soften. You do not want them to completely cook. 
• While waiting, shred the antelope meat. 
• Once the peas are al dente then there should be about two cups of liquid remaining. Add more if needed. 
• Stir in the rice and the shredded antelope and bring the mixture back to a simmer. Cover and allow to cook for 20 minutes or until the rice is done. 
• Serve with the sliced green onions atop. Enjoy! 

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