Inspiration: My single favorite summer food? Hands down, it’s Brandon’s slow cooked pulled pork on the charcoal grill. Heck, I’m tempted to say that it’s even my favorite meal. And the process is fun, too – there’s just something great about sitting outside in the sunshine all day (playing Scrabble and drinking caipirinhas and beer, as we did this last time) while your dinner cooks away on the grill. And I always like to stick to a Southern theme when we have pulled pork, so this time around the sides were deviled eggs and black-eyed peas.

What We Loved: These had a great kick! I added both Cajun seasoning and sliced jalapenos, so there was definitely plenty of spice. With a little earthy oregano, some smoky bacon, and sweet onions cooked in the bacon grease, these beans really had a nice flavor profile. And as always with beans, I just loved the creamy texture.

Tips: While we really enjoyed this dish, we found that the spice level made it hard to taste the other components of the meal. As a result, I actually ended up saving these and eating them all last. So, I might recommend either toning down the spice level if you will be eating these alongside milder foods or just eating them as a meal in their own right. I could definitely just dig right into a whole bowl of them!

Spicy Black-Eyed Peas with Bacon
Source: Inspired from Caviar and Codfish, serves 4-6 as a side dish

6 slices bacon, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
Dried oregano
Cajun seasoning
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 jalapeno, sliced

1. Heat a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the bacon and saute until starting to crisp. Drain any extraneous fat.

2. Add the onions to the pan, and saute for a few more minutes, until softened. Add the garlic, and stir to combine.

3. Add the black-eyed peas. Season to taste with oregano, just a dash of Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper. Mix together and cook over low heat for 5-10 mintues.

4. Add the jalapenos and serve.