Slow Cooker Spicy Black-Eyed Peas

Ingredients

• 6 cups water
• 1 cube chicken bouillon
• 1 pound dried black-eyed peas, sorted and rinsed
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced
• 1 jalapeno chile, seeded and minced
• 8 ounces diced ham
• 4 slices bacon, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
• salt, to taste
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions

Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.

1. Sort and rinse the dried black-eyed peas, then set them aside in the slow cooker insert.

2. Cook the chopped bacon in a skillet over medium heat for about 6 minutes, until crisp. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set it aside.

3. Add the diced onion, minced garlic, diced red bell pepper, and minced jalapeno to the skillet with the bacon fat. Cook over medium heat for about 4 minutes, until softened.

4. Transfer the cooked vegetables and reserved bacon to the slow cooker. Add the peas, diced ham, chicken bouillon cube, 6 cups water, cayenne pepper, cumin, and ground black pepper. Stir well.

5. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours (360 minutes), until the peas are fully tender. Add a splash of water if the mixture looks too thick.

6. Mash some of the peas against the side of the slow cooker with a spoon to thicken the broth, about 2 minutes.

7. Season with salt to taste, stir, and serve hot.