Black-Eyed Peas

Name: Black-Eyed Peas
Total time: 2 h
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Soul Food
Ingredients: Black-eyed beans; Smoked lean ham; Onion; Bay leaf; Water; Black pepper; Salt; Smoked paprika

367 kcal a serving, against 418 for the traditional version. That is 51 kcal off, or 12%, with 26.7g of protein. Serves 6. 2 hours, plus overnight soak.

What the traditional version is

Dried black-eyed peas, soaked overnight, then simmered low and slow with salted pork belly, onion and a bay leaf. The pork melts down, flavouring the broth, and you get a salty, smoky spoonful in every bite.

What changed, and what each change costs

300g pork belly replaced with 80g smoked gammon

Pork belly gives you a luscious broth, but about half the calories come from fat. Smoked gammon's leaner, and you only need a little to get that porky edge.

What it costs you. It's thinner and not as rich. The smoky hit is there, but you'll miss that lip-coating broth if you grew up with it.

Add 5g smoked paprika

Since the pork can't carry the whole dish, smoked paprika steps in. It does a decent impression of slow-cooked meatiness, and it's practically free in calories.

What it costs you. You know it's there, so don't pretend this is the old way. Still, it does more than you'd expect for a teaspoon of dry powder.

Up the black-eyed peas from 500g to 600g

With much less fat in the pot, you can push the beans further to keep the dish hearty. More beans means more protein per bowl.

What it costs you. You get a thicker, peasantier final dish. Portion size looks generous but you don't feel weighed down.

Reduce water from 1500g to 1300g

Less fat means the broth can taste thin. Cutting the water just a bit gives a beanier, heartier bowl.

What it costs you. If you go too far, you'll get sludge. Keep an eye on it as it cooks and don't be afraid to splash a bit more in if the pot looks parched.

What goes in it

The ingredients, without the quantities. The weights are what the figures below are computed from, and they are in the book.

Black-eyed beans
Smoked lean ham
Onion
Bay leaf
Water
Black pepper
Salt
Smoked paprika

How it starts

Soak the black-eyed beans overnight in plenty of water.
Add the beans to a large pot with 1300g water, the onion (peeled and halved), the smoked ham chunk, bay leaf, black pepper and salt.
Bring it up to a gentle simmer - not a rolling boil - and skim off any foamy scum as you go.

The rest of the method, and every weight, is in Authentic-ish Soul Food.

The numbers

Per serving	Traditional	Lightened
Calories	418	367
Protein	29.4g	26.7g
Fat	11.2g	2.1g
Saturated fat	3.9g	0.6g
Carbohydrate	52.2g	62.9g
Protein per 100 kcal	7g	7.3g

Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Soul Food prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked. How every number is computed sets out the method.

The method is in the book

The original is velvetier and heavier on the lips, but you won't walk away hungry with this. It's not the same level of comfort food magic, but for the sake of cutting a slab of pork fat, it stays satisfying. The smoked paprika and lean ham put some backbone in the broth, and you can still taste where it came from.

The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Soul Food, along with 50 more. It is not out yet. The swap kit is free in the meantime.