Food and Recipes Holiday and Occasion Food Cook Up Some Good Luck With These Traditional New Year's Day Recipes By Southern Living Editors Southern Living Editors Since 1966, the editors of Southern Living have been carrying out the mission of the brand: to bring enjoyment, fulfillment, and inspiration to our readers by celebrating life in the South. We inspire creativity in their homes, their kitchens, their gardens, and their personal style. We are a friend they can trust, a guide to the seasons, a helping hand during the holidays, and a relentless champion of the Southern way of life. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Updated on July 13, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos 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 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 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 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 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 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 Hoppin' John Jennifer Davick Recipe: Hoppin' John New Year's Day below the Mason-Dixon 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 Photo: Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Recipe: Texas CaviarThe 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 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 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 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 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 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 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. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit