Our Traditional New Year's Day Feast

There is only one guaranteed day during the year I know, for certain, I get to eat a good ole Southern meal filled with calories, cholesterol and all kinds of other artery-clogging things. Each year we have a small New Year's Day feast at my parents' home. Angie just "loves" going. Primarily because the meal consists of everything she hates. For as long as I can remember we have eaten the same thing, every year, my entire life; hog jawl (thick bacon, really), black-eyed peas, cabbage and cornbread. Those are the essentials. Now in the more recent years of youngins coming into the scene, mom and dad have begun to produce some potatoes and mac 'n cheese. Of course, dad fries up chicken so Angie doesn't leave on too empty of a stomach.

I thought everyone did this... until I met Angie, of course. It seems I had no idea I was "weird" until she let me know. So here we are, two plates down, on New Year's Day and I am wondering just how "weird" I really am. A quick little Google search for "new years food tradition" is bound to provide me with some answers.

*just minutes later*

A-ha!! I am NOT weird! Well, at least in reference to my eating traditions on the first day of the new year. LOTS of people do this very similar meal. It seems the hog jowl is the thing most people "change" or substitute. Lots of people will just eat something called "Hopping John" which is ham hocks cooked with the black-eyed peas. Some people eat hot dogs or pulled pork. It is always pork, though. Some people eat sauerkraut or cole slaw for the cabbage.

Here are some posts just to prove I am not alone:

Forum Post: Who cooks cabbage on New Years Day for Good luck?
-- Here in Pennsylvania Dutch country we have sauerkraut and pork (hot dogs) for New Years!
-- Yes... I have served Cabbage for New Years I've been told that eating Cabbage (or any greens) on New Years bring wealth...and keeps money in your pockets!! I've lived in the South all my life, I've always had growing up and I fix for my family today... Black eyed peas, Fried Hog Jawl, Poor Mans Salad some times called or Wilted salad.. it is (cut up lettuce with cut up green onions or onions and use the very hot grease from fried hog jawl over it (<--- Justin has tried this too, not a fan, but my grandma calls it "Polk Salad").
-- Mmm, sounds good but my family tradition is that they cook black-eyed peas and collard greens. Apparently there is this old wives tales that you eat them both on New Year's Day to bring good luck and fortune into the new year.

Forum Post: What is the traditional New Year's Day dinner for North America?
-- I know they have black-eyed peas in the south, but I'm in Ohio. Is the traditional dinner pork and sauerkraut? What else?
-- I'm from NY....we always had a traditional turkey dinner.
-- I think traditional New Year's Day dinner for North Koreans consists of tree bark and grass. And maybe a mealy beetle if they're lucky.
-- In the south it's ham, collard greens and black eyed peas. I know that the collards are for money, the black eyed peas are for luck, Im not really sure about the ham, I think it's prosperity or something like that.
-- In our home it is Ham, Collard Greens, Black Eyed Peas and Corn Bread. Except this year we are smoking a Turkey Breast instead of a Ham.

Happy New Year! (go eat some pork!)