- 1 pound dried black-eyed peas
- 1 pound pork neck bones
- 3 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup diced carrot
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 6 cups cold water
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste
- 1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6 ounces smoked ham, diced
- 1 bunch kale, ribs removed and leaves torn into pieces
- Place black-eyed peas into a large container and cover with several inches of cool water; let stand 8 hours to overnight. Drain and set aside.
- Cook pork necks and bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in onion, celery, and carrot; cook and stir until softened, 6 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute.
- Pour cold water and black-eyed peas into pork mixture; increase heat to high.
- Stir in bay leaf, thyme, cumin, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Bring mixture to a simmer, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes.
- Stir in tomatoes and salt. Simmer uncovered until beans are tender, about 40 minutes.
- Remove neck bones from mixture; separate any meat from bones, return meat to Dutch oven, and discard bones.
- Stir in diced ham and kale; cook until greens are tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve over rice.