Good Luck New Year's Soup

In the South and well beyond, no New Year’s table is complete without a pot of beans for luck, and this soup hedges every bet with five different legumes at once. Black-eyed peas, lentils, white beans, kidney beans, and dried peas all go in, each one a little token of coins and prosperity for the year ahead.

A meaty ham bone does the heavy work of flavor, simmering with the soaked beans for hours until the broth turns smoky and rich and the legumes go meltingly soft.

Onion, tomato, and garlic round it out, and a good squeeze of lemon at the end keeps all that richness from feeling heavy.

This is a soup that rewards patience. The longer it simmers, the thicker and more soulful it gets, until it’s almost stew. Good luck never tasted so good.

Kitchen Tips

• Soak the beans overnight. It shortens the cooking time and helps the different legumes finish closer to evenly.
• Use a ham bone or hock if you can. The bone lends body and a deep smoky flavor that diced ham alone can’t match.
• Salt carefully at the end. Ham is already salty, so taste before adding more.
• Let it simmer until it’s truly thick. A long, slow cook is what gives this soup its rich, almost stew-like body.

Variations

• Stir in chopped collard or kale greens, another New Year’s symbol of prosperity, near the end.
• Add a splash of hot sauce or a smoked sausage for extra heat and smoke.