This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

Southern Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas is a delicious, good old fashioned dish that is popular for New Year’s Day feasts. Eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s is a tradition, and is said to be lucky. Make a pot of pressure cooker black-eyed peas to ring in the New Year, or any time you want a super flavorful meal!

Southern Pressure Cooker Black Eyed Peas in white bowl next to wooden spoon

Southern Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas

Eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day is said to bring good luck. The swelling of the peas signifies prosperity. Cooked with pork, because pigs root forward, and served with greens, symbolizing money.

My Number 1 piece of advice for the BEST tasting Instant pot Southern Black-Eyed Peas is to make sure your ham hock (or whatever meat you use) is SMOKED.

The smoky flavor makes all the difference in the amazing flavor of this recipe!

Southern Black Eyed Peas in pressure cooker with wooden mixing spoon

do I need to Soak the black-eyed peas before cooking them?

No you don’t. These will cook pretty fast, so no soaking needed (but do rinse them well first).

If you do soak them, or use canned black-eyed peas, you can cut the cook time in half, though the ham hock will not get soft enough in that short amount of time.

I would start the ham hock cooking in some water, about 10 minutes, then cook the rest of the dish, adding the ham hock back in.

This is how my mom made black-eyed peas, and I love them!

Southern pressure cooker Black Eyed Peas can be made any time of the year. They are so delicious!

blue banner with the words you might also like
Instant Pot Black-Eyed Peas
Instant Pot Collard Greens
Instant Pot Pork Carnitas
Instant Pot Cuban Black Beans

Pin This Recipe

Southern Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas in white bowl as well as title and Simply Happy Foodie.com logo

If you make this delicious Southern pressure cooker black-eyed peas recipe, please leave me a comment and a star rating below. I would like to know how you liked them!

Southern Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas
4.98 from 41 votes

Southern Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas

By Sandy Clifton
Southern Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas is a delicious, good old fashioned dish that is popular for New Year's Day feasts.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 40 minutes
NPR: 15 minutes
Total: 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 8
Save this recipe!
Get this sent to your inbox, plus get new recipes from us every week!

Ingredients 

  • 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • 1 lg Onion, chopped
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 6 cloves Garlic, minced
  • 1 lb Dry Black-Eyed Peas, rinsed
  • 1 lb Smoked Ham Hock (make sure it is smoked, for best flavor)
  • 4 slices Thick Cut Smoky Bacon, chopped
  • 5 cups Water
  • 2 tsp Better Than Bouillon Ham or Chicken Base, low sodium
  • ¼ tsp Pepper

Instructions 

  • Turn on the Sauté setting. When hot, add the oil and the onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion starts to turn translucent.
  • Add the bay leaves and the garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, for 20 seconds.
  • Add the remaining ingredients to the pot. Cancel the sauté setting.
  • Close the lid and set the steam release knob to the Sealing position.
  • Press the Pressure Cook/Manual button, and then the +/- button to select 16 minutes. High Pressure.
  • When the cook cycle has finished, turn off the pot and let it sit undisturbed for a 15 minute natural release. Then turn the steam release knob to the Venting position to release the remaining pressure.
  • When the pin in the lid drops back down, open the lid.
  • Remove the bay leaves and discard. Then remove the ham hocks and get the meat off of the bones. Add the meat back into the pot.
  • Taste and add a little salt, if needed.
  • Serve alongside some cornbread. You can also serve over rice for a Hoppin' John style meal.

Notes

This recipe can be made in a 3 qt by reducing ingredients by 1/3. Keep the cook time the same.
 
This can be a "Dump and Start" recipe if you don't want to do the sautéing steps.

Nutrition

Calories: 360kcal

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Tried this recipe?Mention @simply_happy_foodie

pink button with the words follow my Simply Happy Foodie pinterest board

RESOURCES TO MAKE Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas recipe and more

This post contains Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Sharing is caring!

Sandy wearing a black shirt and a red apron

Hi, I’m Sandy!

My style of cooking is casual, uncomplicated, and everything is made from my heart. I hope my recipes will help you get the meal on the table a little easier

Simply Happy Foodie Electric Pressure Cooking book

Get my cookbook!

Simply Happy Electric Pressure Cooking has over 175 delicious recipes for the Instant Pot®, as well as some of my favorite homemade spice blends.

Related Recipes

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.