Cook Up Some Good Luck With These Traditional New Year's Day Recipes

A traditional New Year's Day supper will bring you fortune in the year to come.

Instant Pot Black-eyed Pea Soup
Photo: Photography: Alison Miksch, Prop Styling: Sarah Elizabeth Cleveland, Food Styling: Melissa Gray

According to Southern lore, you will have good luck for the entire year if you have the traditional New Year's Day supper. In the South, that means a meal of collard greens, hoppin' John, black-eyed peas, cornbread, and pot likker soup. For an auspicious year, we've rounded up some of our favorite traditional New Years' Day recipes.

We have all the classic New Year's recipes, from Southern-Style Collard Greens to classic Hoppin' John. Thanks to handy gadgets like an Instant Pot, many of these traditional New Year's recipes are easier than ever, like our Instant Pot Black-eyed Pea Soup. For a new twist on Southern traditions, try our Black-Eyed Pea and Grain Salad or our well-spiced, oven-roasted black-eyed peas. However you choose to cook up your New Year's staples, these traditional Southern New Year's Day recipes will fill your table with the perfect ingredients for an auspicious year.

Now, we can guarantee that these dishes will taste great—the luck part is up to you.

01 of 19

Instant Pot Black-eyed Peas

Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas
Photography and Styling: Caitlin Bensel

Recipe: Instant Pot Black-eyed Peas

Soaking time aside, this Instant Pot dish comes together quicker than your typical New Year's Day black-eyed pea recipe.

02 of 19

Hoppin' John

Hoppin' John Soup
Photo: Johnny Autry

Recipe: Hoppin' John

Hoppin' John pairs black-eyed peas with rice. The rice and beans are cooked slowly with bacon, fatback, or ham hock along with onion and salt. "Skippin' Jenny," as the leftovers are known the day after New Year's, shows one's frugality: Eating it increases your chances of prosperity.

03 of 19

Southern-Style Collard Greens

Southern-Style Collard Greens
Jim Franco; Prop Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller; Food Styling: Simon Andrews

Recipe: Southern-Style Collard Greens

Slow-cooking collards with pork makes them mouthwatering and tender. Their soul-warming taste can be perfected only with the addition of vinegar. Be sure to save a few uncooked greens to tack to the ceiling for good luck or hang over the door to ward off evil spirits.

04 of 19

Southern Skillet Cornbread

Thanksgiving Skillet Dishes Sour Cream Cornbread
Beth Dreiling Hontzas

Recipe: Southern Skillet Cornbread

Cornbread, which some say symbolizes gold, completes the Southern New Year's triad. Native Americans were the first to bake a cornmeal mixture, and Southerners made it daily when wheat was a rarity in the region. For authentic Southern flavor, choose a recipe that uses little, if any, sugar and flour. Don't forget the cracklings, crispy morsels produced during the rendering of lard.

05 of 19

Instant Pot Collard Greens

Instant Pot Collard Greens
Photographer: Antonis Achilleos, Prop Stylist: Kay E. Clarke Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Instant Pot Collard Greens

These quick collards are so good that we recommend making two batches and freezing one to enjoy later.

06 of 19

Classic Hoppin' John

Hoppin’ John
Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Classic Hoppin' John

New Year's Day just wouldn't be complete without Hoppin' John on the stove. This savory dish is going to be your family's favorite—guaranteed.

07 of 19

Maple-Bourbon Glazed Ham

maple bourbon glazed ham
Photographer: Frederick Hardy II, Food Stylist: Margaret Dickey, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley

Recipe: Maple-Bourbon Glazed Ham

A New Year's Day celebration isn't complete without a glazed ham, and might we say that this recipe is one of our best.

08 of 19

Slow-Cooker Peas-and-Greens Soup with Turkey Sausage

Slow-Cooker Peas-and-Greens Soup with Turkey Sausage
Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling; Heather Chadduck Hillegas; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Slow-Cooker Peas-and-Greens Soup with Turkey Sausage

Lighten up your New Year's meal with this healthier twist on a classic lucky soup, chock full of peas and greens.

09 of 19

Southern-Style Collard Greens

Southern-Style Collard Greens in a white bowl with a bowl of cornbread beside it
Photographer: Fred Hardy II, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Props Stylist: Christina Brockman

Recipe: Southern-Style Collard Greens

Consider this recipe your ultimate guide for cooking Southern-style collard greens—on New Year's Day or any day to come.

10 of 19

Pork Chops with Dijon-Buttermilk Sauce

Pork Chops with Dijon-Buttermilk Sauce
Greg DuPree; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Christina Daley

Recipe: Pork Chops with Dijon-Buttermilk Sauce

The more pork in your meal, the more luck you will have. So don't just use ham hock and fatback to flavor your veggies; eat a baked ham or these pork chops as a main dish.

11 of 19

Easy Black-Eyed Peas

Easy Black-Eyed Peas
Jennifer Causey; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Audrey Davis

Recipe: Easy Black-Eyed Peas

Don't overcomplicate things: These Easy Black-Eyed Peas have the potential to be the star of your New Year's Day spread.

12 of 19

Black-Eyed Pea and Grain Salad

Lucky Black-Eyed Pea Salad
Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Black-Eyed Pea and Grain Salad

This dish offers an updated take on black-eyed peas while still delivering the good luck of the traditional dish. Fresh corn adds an extra crunch and a jalapeño chile introduces some spice.

13 of 19

Texas Caviar

Texas Caviar Recipe
Photo: Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox

Recipe: Texas Caviar
The best New Year's snack? A bowl of Texas Caviar, of course. This dip is made of tomatoes, bell pepper, and, of course, lucky black-eyed peas.

14 of 19

Hoppin' John with Braised Oxtail

Hoppin' John
Erin Kunkel; Styling: Melissa Padilla

Recipe: Hoppin' John with Braised Oxtail

This updated, ultra-sophisticated recipe for Hoppin' John with Braised Oxtail requires 4 hours and 30 minutes of cook time—but we promise, it's worth the wait.

15 of 19

Chili-Roasted Black Eyed Peas

Chili-Roasted Black Eyed Peas
Southern Living

Recipe: Chili-Roasted Black Eyed Peas

With the flavor-packed coating on these treats, you'll easily be able to eat 365—some traditions hold that you must eat one for each day of the coming year. Roasting the peas gives them a crispy texture that's perfect for snacking or serving as an appetizer on New Year's Day.

16 of 19

Sautéed Mustard Greens with Garlic and Lemon

Sautéed Mustard Greens with Garlic and Lemon
Laurey W. Glenn

Recipe: Sautéed Mustard Greens with Garlic and Lemon

Not a fan of collards? Swap them out for these Sautéed Mustard Greens with Garlic and Lemon.

17 of 19

Southwest Black-Eyed Pea Dip

Southwest Black-Eyed Pea Dip
Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Christina Lane; Food Styling: Tina Bell Stamos

Recipe: Southwest Black-Eyed Pea Dip Recipe

Start your New Year's meal off right with this auspicious dip, chock full of black-eyed peas.

18 of 19

Cornbread Ice Cream

Cornbread Ice Cream
Southern Living

Recipe: Cornbread Ice Cream

Finish up your New Year's Day meal with an auspicious scoop of Cornbread Ice Cream.

19 of 19

Instant Pot Black-eyed Pea Soup

Instant Pot Black-eyed Pea Soup
Photography: Alison Miksch, Prop Styling: Sarah Elizabeth Cleveland, Food Styling: Melissa Gray

Recipe: Instant Pot Black-eyed Pea Soup

Ham, collards, and black-eyed peas all make an appearance in this lucky New Year's Day soup. Be sure to sop it all up with cornbread.

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