New Year's + Black Eyed Peas = ?

Miso and I came across a tub of soaked Black Eyed Peas the other day in the refrigerated section of a grocery store. We both had never seen the peas available that way and the title read 'New Years Black Eyed Peas'. We both looked at each other thinking 'New Years? What's the story behind that?' So for those of you that are curious too, here's a little history of the tradition of eating Black Eyed Peas for New Years:

The "good luck" traditions of eating black-eyed peas on New Year's Day are recorded in the Babylonian Talmud (compiled ~500 CE), Horayot 12A: "Abaye [d. 339 CE] said, now that you have established that good-luck symbols avail, you should make it a habit to see Qara (bottle gourd), Rubiya (black-eyed peas, Arabic Lubiya), Kartei (leeks), Silka (either beets or spinach), and Tamrei (dates) on your table on the New Year." A parallel text in Kritot 5B states that one should eat these symbols of good luck. The accepted custom (Shulhan Aruh Orah Hayim 583:1, 16th century, the standard code of Jewish law and practice) is to eat the symbols. This custom is followed by Sepharadi and Israeli Jews to this day. The first Sepharadi Jews arrived in Georgia in the 1730s and have lived there continuously since. The Jewish practice was apparently adopted by non-Jews around the time of the Civil War.

These "good luck" traditions date back to the U.S. Civil War. Union troops, especially in areas targeted by General William Tecumseh Sherman, would typically strip the countryside of all stored food, crops, and livestock and destroy whatever they couldn't carry away. At that time, Northerners considered "field peas" and corn suitable only for animal fodder, and as a result didn't steal or destroy these humble foods. Many Southerners survived as a result of this mistake.^[1]

Rice and peas is a popular dish in Jamaica and other Caribbean Islands.

Texas Caviar is a traditional New Year's Day dish made from black eyed peas marinated in Italian salad dressing and chopped garlic and served cold.^[2]

In Portugal black-eyed pea is used to serve boiled cod and potatoes and also with tuna and in salads.

In Vietnam, black-eyed peas are used in a sweet dessert called chè đậu trắng (black-eyed peas and sticky rice with coconut milk).

In Greece and Cyprus, they are eaten with vegetables, oil, salt and lemon.^[3]

In the northern part of Colombia black eye peas are used to prepare a fritter called "Buñuelo." The beans are immersed in water for a few hours to loosen their skin and soften the bean. The skins are then removed either by hand or with the help of a manual grinder. Once the skins are removed, the bean is ground or blended and eggs are added which produces a soft mix. The mix is fried in hot oil. It makes a nutritious breakfast meal.

In many cultures, the black-eyed pea is considered a natural aphrodisiac

Via Wikipedia