Black-Eyed Pea Soup

This delicious Black-Eyed Pea Soup also has sausage and bell peppers and this soup is sure to bring you luck! And the soup has a generous amount of sausage and peppers so it’s fairly low in net carbs, but see suggestions for an even lower-carb version.

PIN Lucky Black-Eyed Pea Soup to try it later!

Without a doubt,  Hopping John Soup is the most popular Black-Eyed Pea recipe on this site, and that’s a tasty option if you’re trying to get some good luck in the New Year. But if you don’t want collard greens or just want to switch it up a bit, this Black-Eyed Pea Soup with sausage and bell peppers is also a perfect soup to make for good luck on New Year’s Day, so I’m recommending it as my Friday Favorites pick for this week!

And this is a pretty carb-conscious soup for a recipe that uses black-eyed peas, and you could easily make this lower in carbs by using more sausage and peppers and fewer black-eyed peas if that’s what you prefer.

I’ve been cooking black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day for years now, and I can promise you, it has definitely brought me good luck. If you’re going to be cooking some black-eyed peas for New Year’s Day, let us know in the comments how you’re fixing them this year.

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

• Olive Oil (affiliate link)
• precooked sausage
• onion
• Minced Garlic (affiliate link)
• Dried Thyme (affiliate link) or ground thyme
• Dried Oregano (affiliate link)
• frozen black-eyed peas
• homemade chicken stock or canned chicken broth (affiliate link)
• water
• red bell pepper
• green bell pepper
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
• sherry vinegar, or any mild vinegar
• additional vinegar and olive oil for serving (optional)

Why do people eat black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day?

Black-Eyed Peas are a traditional food that’s eaten to greet the New Year in the United States, especially in the southern states. They’re often eaten with collard greens in a dish called Hopping John, and the peas (which expand when they’re cooked) symbolize prosperity and the collard greens symbolize money. Legends about the luck-enhancing properties of these foods date back to the Civil War in the South. Read more about eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day.

How can you make this recipe lower in carbs?

If you check the nutritional information you’ll see this lucky soup is relatively low in net carbs for a soup with beans. If you prefer a version with even fewer carbs, just use more sausage and peppers and fewer black-eyed peas.

Want more tasty ideas for using black-eyed peas?

Other recipes I’ve made with black-eyed peas for New Year’s Day include my favorite Hopping John Soup, Black-Eyed Pea Hummus, or Black-Eyed Pea Salad.

How to Make Black-Eyed Pea Soup:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. I’m a fan of frozen black-eyed peas, which need to be cooked but cook more quickly than dried black-eyed peas. If you can’t find them, you can use the dried ones but you need to allow much longer more cooking time.
2. I used Sabatino’s Chicken Sausage with Mozzarella, Artichokes and Garlic, but if you can’t find those use any chicken or turkey sausage with garlic. (Choose gluten-free sausage if needed.)
3. Slice the sausage and saute in a little olive oil until they’re well-browned.
4. While the sausage cooks, chop the onion and mince the garlic.  Remove the sausage when it’s browned, heat a little more olive oil and cook onions for a few minutes.  Then add the garlic, thyme, and oregano and cook 1-2 minutes more.
5. Add the frozen (or dried) black-eyed peas, water, and chicken stock and simmer 30 minutes or until the peas are starting to soften. (Dried peas may need as much as 1-2 hours to start to soften. They will cook a little more quickly if they’re soaked overnight.)
6. While the peas are simmering, remove seeds and finely chop the red and green bell pepper.
7. Add the diced peppers and sausage to the soup pot and cook about 45 minutes more (or longer if the peas are not fully softened.)
8. When the soup is done, season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper, stir in the sherry vinegar, and serve hot, with olive oil and sherry vinegar to drizzle on each bowl if desired.

More Lucky Black-Eyed Peas for the New Year:

Check out Black-Eyed Pea Recipes for Good Luck in the New Year for more lucky food ideas! There’s also a great collection of Slow Cooker and Instant Pot Black-Eyed Peas Recipes on my other site.

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Yield: 8 servings

Black-Eyed Pea Soup

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 35 minutes

Lucky Black-Eyed Pea Soup is quick and tasty for good luck on New Year’s Day!

Ingredients

• 2 tsp. + 2 tsp. olive oil
• one pound precooked sausage, sliced about 3/8 inch thick  (see notes)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 T minced garlic
• 1 tsp. dried thyme or ground thyme
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 16 oz. package frozen black-eyed peas (see notes)
• 6 cups chicken broth (see notes)
• 1 cup water (and more as needed)
• 1 red bell pepper, seeds removed and finely diced
• 1 green bell pepper, seeds removed and finely diced
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 2 T sherry vinegar (or any mild vinegar)
• additional sherry vinegar and olive oil for serving (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat 2 tsp. olive in oil in a large soup pot and cook the sausage over medium-high heat until it’s nicely browned on all side, about 6-8 minutes.  Don’t rush the browning step.  Remove sausage to a bowl and set aside.
2. While the sausage browns, chop the onion and mince the garlic.
3. After you remove the sausage, turn heat to medium and add 2 tsp. more olive oil.  When the oil is hot add the onions and cook until partially softened, about 3-4 minutes.
4. Then add the minced garlic, dried thyme, and dried oregano and saute a minute or two more.
5. Add the frozen black-eyed peas, chicken stock, and 1 cup water and bring to a low boil.
6. Turn heat to low and simmer about 30 minutes, or until the peas are starting to soften.  (If you’re using dried black-eyed peas they will need longer cooking time to start softening, as much as 1-2 hours.)
7. When the peas are partly soft, add the diced red and green bell peppers and sausage and simmer about 45 minutes more, or until the peas are done to your liking.  If the soup seems too thick, add a little more water as it cooks.
8. Season the soup with salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste and stir in the 2 T sherry vinegar.
9. Serve soup hot, with additional olive oil and sherry vinegar to drizzle on at serving time if desired.

Notes

I used Sabatinos Chicken Sausage with Mozzarella, Artichokes and Garlic, but use any chicken, turkey, or pork sausage you prefer.

You can also use dried black-eyed peas, which will take longer to cook. or canned black-eyed peas which will cook more quickly than the frozen ones.

I used my homemade chicken stock, but chicken broth from a can or carton will be fine.

Recipe created by Kalyn.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 295Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 38mgSodium: 1240mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 4gSugar: 5gProtein: 13g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Black-Eyed Pea Soup is not that high in net carbs because of the generous amount of sausage and peppers; check the nutritional information. If you want even fewer carbs just use fewer black-eyed peas and more sausage and peppers. This lucky soup would be approved for any phase of the original South Beach Diet and other low-glycemic eating plans. 

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Soup Recipes for more ideas like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Danica's Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe was posted in 2012, and I’ve made it for many New Year’s Day parties since then. It was last updated with more information in 2023.

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