Mise en place

• Wash and dry produce.
• Dice the celery, carrots, and onion.
• Mince the garlic.
• Measure out the ingredients.

Cook the black-eyed peas

• Place the black-eyed peas in a large saucepan filled with water- enough to cover beans by two to three inches.
• Bring water to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Let cook for 15-20 minutes.
• Remove from heat, drain softened peas. and set aside.

Cook the Ham-Hock

• In a slow cooker, add the ham hocks, diced onions, carrots, and celery, along with smoked paprika, cayenne and garlic.
• Pour in 2-3 cups of water and cook on high setting for about an hour.
• Reduce heat setting on slow cooker to Low and then add the peas to the slow cooker- cook for 5 to 6 hours.
• Remove ham hock from the slow cooker, and shred (when shredding, you can remove bits of fat remaining after cooking.)
• Add the meat back to the peas.

Serve

• Add salt and pepper to taste and serve!
• Enjoy!