Peas, greens, cornbread, and pork.
One plate, four decisions, and a plan for the kitchen you have.
The Southern New Year's Day plate already has a script. Black-eyed peas for luck. Greens for money. Cornbread for gold. Pork because the pig roots forward.
The script is settled. The decisions are not. Which greens fit your kitchen? Cornbread from the skillet or from the Instant Pot? Ham or pulled pork?
This page answers those four questions with tested recipes, then helps you plan the cooking around the equipment you have.
Step 1: The Peas
Instant Pot Hoppin' John
Best for: the peas and the rice cooked together, with the pressure cooker doing the work.
Hoppin' John is peas and rice cooked together, and it is the dish the whole plate is built around. This version uses frozen field peas and snaps, which are in the same cowpea family as black-eyed peas, cooked with long grain rice in one pot. The recipe makes six servings. For a larger table, plan separate batches and account for the extra cooker use.
Step 2: Pick Your Greens
Three collard greens recipes, plus cabbage. Choose by the cooking method, texture, and equipment you want to use.
The Stovetop Pot: Southern Collard Greens
Best for: a slow New Year's Day at home, and the most pot liquor.
Smoked turkey and bacon build a slow stovetop pot that serves 16. This is the pot that leaves you with cups of pot liquor to save, and the cornbread below is built for dipping in it.
The Pressure Route: Instant Pot Collard Greens
Best for: a pressure cooker pot of greens that leaves the stovetop free.
The recipe serves 12. If Hoppin' John needs the same Instant Pot, plan the greens as a separate batch rather than trying to cook both at once.
The Skillet Method: Sautéed Collard Greens
Best for: tender greens with more texture, cooked in a skillet. The recipe serves 8.
Another Green: Instant Pot Cabbage
Best for: the second green on the plate, or a pressure cooker alternative to collards. The recipe serves 8, Southern style.
Step 3: Cornbread, Two Ways
Cast Iron Cornbread
Best for: the skillet, the crust, and the pot liquor.
Savory, not sweet. The recipe serves 12, and the texture is made for dipping in pot liquor. This is the one to make if the greens are the all-day pot.
Instant Pot Cornbread
Best for: making cornbread without using the oven.
Made from scratch in the pot, with 12 servings. It leaves the oven free, but it still needs its own turn in the pressure cooker.
Technique Highlight
Save the pot liquor. The broth left in the bottom of the greens pot is not a byproduct. It is part of the dish. Ladle it over the plate, dip the cast iron cornbread in it, and save what is left. The Southern Collard Greens post explains what builds it and why the broth gets strained.
Step 4: The Pork
Choose a precooked spiral ham or pulled pork. Both use the pressure cooker, so include the pork when you plan the equipment.
A Precooked Spiral Ham
Start with a newly purchased, precooked spiral ham. Instant Pot Ham warms it in the pressure cooker and finishes under the broiler with a brown sugar crust. The recipe serves 24.
The other direction: pulled pork and baked beans
Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork with Chinese Five Spice is pork without the ham. The recipe serves 16, with a spice profile that is nowhere near traditional. It still counts as pork.
Southern-Style Pressure Cooker Baked Beans are the extra bowl when the table is bigger than the peas. The recipe serves 12 and needs a separate pressure cooker batch.
The Plate at a Glance
| Dish | Equipment | Planning note | Feeds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instant Pot Hoppin' John | Instant Pot | Plan a separate batch for peas and rice. | 6 |
| Southern Collard Greens | Stovetop | Start with this slow stovetop pot. | 16 |
| Instant Pot Collard Greens | Instant Pot | Leaves the stovetop free; needs its own cooker batch. | 12 |
| Sautéed Collard Greens | Skillet | Uses a burner instead of the pressure cooker. | 8 |
| Instant Pot Cabbage | Instant Pot | Another green that needs its own cooker batch. | 8 |
| Cast Iron Cornbread | Oven, skillet | Use the oven while the pressure cooker is busy. | 12 |
| Instant Pot Cornbread | Instant Pot, baking pan | Leaves the oven free; reserves the pressure cooker. | 12 |
| Instant Pot Ham | Instant Pot, broiler | Starts with precooked spiral ham and includes a broiler finish. | 24 |
| Pulled Pork | Pressure cooker | Needs its own pressure cooker batch. | 16 |
| Baked Beans | Pressure cooker | An optional extra pressure cooker batch. | 12 |
Several of these recipes use the same appliance. Choose the menu first, then reserve a separate turn in the pressure cooker for each dish.
Suggested New Year's Day Menus
Menu 1: The Classic Plate
Peas: Instant Pot Hoppin' John
Greens: Southern Collard Greens (stovetop)
Cornbread: Cast Iron Cornbread
Pork: Instant Pot Ham
This menu spreads the work across the stovetop, oven, and pressure cooker. Hoppin' John and ham still need separate turns in the Instant Pot.
Menu 2: The Pressure Cooker Plate
Peas: Instant Pot Hoppin' John
Greens: Instant Pot Collard Greens
Cornbread: Instant Pot Cornbread
Pork: Instant Pot Ham, with a broiler finish
Each dish needs a separate pressure cooker batch. With one pot, this menu requires the most coordination. Choose skillet greens or oven cornbread if you want to spread the work across appliances. The ham also needs the broiler for its crust.
Menu 3: The Pulled Pork Plate
Peas: Instant Pot Hoppin' John
Greens: Sautéed Collard Greens
Cornbread: Cast Iron Cornbread
Pork: Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork with Chinese Five Spice
Hoppin' John and pulled pork both need the pressure cooker. The greens use a skillet, and the cornbread uses the oven. Add baked beans only if another pressure cooker batch fits the plan.
Step 5: Plan the Cooking
Before New Year's Day
- Wash, stem, and chop the collards; refrigerate them until you're ready to cook.
- Choose your menu and check the equipment listed in each recipe.
- Check quantities against your guest count. Hoppin' John serves six, so a larger table needs more than one batch.
On New Year's Day
Use the recipe instructions for the cooking details, and plan the meal around the equipment each dish needs.
- Start the stovetop pot: If Southern Collard Greens are on the menu, start with that slow stovetop pot.
- Plan the pressure cooker batches: List every pressure cooker recipe in your menu. Allow a separate batch for each, including pressure buildup and release as directed in its recipe.
- Use the other appliances: Cook skillet greens and oven cornbread around your pressure cooker work.
- Finish the ham: Follow the Instant Pot Ham instructions, including its broiler finish.
- Serve the plate: Peas and rice, greens with pot liquor, cornbread, and your choice of pork.
Keep finished perishable dishes hot at 140°F or above. If you cool a dish to reheat later, divide it into shallow containers and refrigerate it promptly, within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F). Reheat leftovers to 165°F, following USDA’s leftover safety guidance.
Still Not Sure?
Most pot liquor: Southern Collard Greens.
Leave the stovetop free: Instant Pot Collard Greens.
Another pressure cooker green: Instant Pot Cabbage.
Cornbread for dipping: Cast Iron.
Leave the oven free: Instant Pot Cornbread.
Precooked spiral ham: Instant Pot Ham.
Pork without ham: Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork.
Bigger table than the peas: add the Baked Beans if another cooker batch fits.
New Year's Day FAQ
You can use the Instant Pot for Hoppin' John, collard greens, cornbread, and ham, but each needs a separate batch. The ham also needs a broiler finish. With one pot, plan that extra coordination; skillet greens and oven cornbread give you other options.
Choose Southern Collard Greens for a slow stovetop pot and plenty of pot liquor, Instant Pot Collard Greens when you want to leave the stove free, or Sautéed Collard Greens for the skillet method and more texture. Instant Pot Cabbage is another pressure cooker option.
Choose Instant Pot Ham for a newly purchased, precooked spiral ham with a brown sugar crust, or Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork with Chinese Five Spice if you want pork without ham. Both need their own pressure cooker batch; the ham also uses the broiler.
The Cast Iron Cornbread is savory, not sweet, on purpose. It is the texture for dipping in pot liquor, and the post recommends it for cornbread dressing too. The post also gives the sugar ratio if your table wants it sweeter.
Holiday Dinner Game Plans
- Thanksgiving Dinner Game Plan
- Christmas Dinner Game Plan
- New Year's Day Game Plan
- Easter Dinner Game Plan
- St. Patrick's Day Corned Beef Game Plan
The plate is the tradition. The choices are the plan. Peas, greens, cornbread, and pork, chosen for the kitchen you have on January 1st.
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