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    Home » Recipes » Vegan Recipes

    Easy Hoppin’ John Tofu Scramble

    Published: Dec 26, 2021 · Modified: May 12, 2023 by Dianne · This post may contain affiliate links

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    Easy Hoppin’ John Tofu Scramble with text overlay
    Easy Hoppin’ John Tofu Scramble with text overlay
    Easy Hoppin’ John Tofu Scramble with text overlay

    Start the year with a breakfast of Hoppin’ John tofu scramble for a prosperous new year! Made with black eyed peas, collard greens, and diced tomatoes along with tofu, it contains the ingredients of the traditional Southern dish in breakfast form. This easy recipe is vegan and gluten-free.

    Easy Hoppin’ John Tofu Scramble with text overlay

    What Is Hoppin' John?

    Hoppin’ John is a southern dish that’s supposed to bring good fortune to the new year. It’s traditionally made with black eyed peas, greens such as collards or kale and some sort of pork or bacon.

    The black eyed peas are symbolic of coins, and since the greens are the color of money they’re supposed to add extra wealth. It's often served with cornbread, which is the color of gold, for added good fortune.

    two bowls of of Hoppin’ John Tofu Scramble with collards, onion, hot sauce and tomatoes

    Hoppin' John for a Prosperous New Year

    Over the past few years, I’ve started the custom of having Hoppin’ John on New Year’s Day – or at least some sort of meal that contains black-eyed peas and collard greens. To quote Michael Scott, “I’m not superstitious, but I’m a little stitious.”

    In past years, I’ve celebrated the new year with plain old Hoppin’ John as well as Black Eyed Pea Burgers. This year I thought I’d serve Hoppin’ John for breakfast, in the form of a tofu scramble. Loaded with tomatoes, collard greens, and black-eyed peas, this breakfast dish is sure to help you start the new year on the right foot. You don't need to wait until New Year's Day to make it though. It's delicious any time of the year!

    bowl of tofu scramble with corn bread

    How to Press Tofu

    Make sure you press your tofu before cooking with it. Pressing tofu removes excess water, and it helps the tofu to absorb the flavors of what it’s cooked with.

    To do this, wrap your tofu in a towel and put something heavy on top of it, such as a cast iron pan or a cutting board topped with a few cans of bean., and leave it for about 30 minutes to an hour.

    tofu press

    If you give yourself enough time in advance, you can wrap your tofu in a towel and place it in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. There’s no need to place anything heavy on top of it if you do it this way, as the towel will absorb the excess liquid over time.

    You can also use a tofu press, if you have one. I’ve found that tofu only needs to be pressed for about 15 minutes when I use my TofuXpress.

    tofu, black eyed peas, diced tomatoes, collards, tofu, spices, onion, nutritional yeast

    How to Make Hoppin' John Tofu Scramble

    This recipe is super easy to make!

    • First you cook the onion in the oil over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, or until it's begun to brown.
    • Next you crumble the tofu and add it the pan along with the nutritional yeast, herbs, and spices. You stir it all together to coat the tofu.
    • Then you add the garlic, tomatoes, black-eyed peas, and collard greens to the pan, and cook it for 10-15 more minutes, until it's heated throughout.
    making tofu scramble collage

    Easy peasy!

    Planning on staying up late to watch the ball drop? You can make your scramble the day before and reheat it  in the morning!

    two bowls of of Hoppin’ John Tofu Scramble with collards, onion, garlic, and tomatoes

    Serving Your Scramble

    • Serve your scramble with cornbread or cornbread muffins to represent gold.
    • I like to serve my scramble with tempeh bacon, too.
    • Make sure you have lots of hot sauce on the side to spice things up!

    Here’s to a prosperous year ahead!

    pan of tofu scramble with onion, garlic, collards, and tomatoes
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    pan of tofu scramble with onion, garlic, collards, and tomatoes

    Hoppin’ John Tofu Scramble

    Dianne
    Start the year with a breakfast of Hoppin’ John tofu scramble for a prosperous new year! 
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 20 minutes mins
    Course Breakfast, Brunch
    Cuisine American
    Servings 4 servings
    Calories 59 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
    • 1 medium onion diced
    • 1 14-ounce block tofu (firm or extra firm) drained and pressed
    • 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
    • 1 teaspoon onion powder
    • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
    • ½ teaspoon turmeric
    • ½ teaspoon cumin
    • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
    • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
    • ½ teaspoon dried thyme
    • ½ teaspoon dried basil
    • ½ teaspoon black salt kala namak
    • 2 cloves garlic minced
    • 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
    • 1 15-ounce can black-eyed peas drained and rinsed
    • 1 bunch collard greens stems removed, chopped (about 6 cups)

    Instructions
     

    • Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until it begins to brown, about five minutes.
    • Crumble the tofu and add it the pan along with the nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, turmeric, cumin, cayenne, oregano, thyme, basil, and black salt. Stir to coat the tofu in the herbs and spices.
    • Add the garlic, tomatoes, black-eyed peas, and collard greens. Cook for 10-15 more minutes, until heated throughout.
    • Serve hot, with lots of hot sauce.
    Calories: 59kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 302mg | Potassium: 298mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 2502IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 135mg | Iron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Tag @diannewenz on Instagram!
    bowl of tofu scramble with onion, garlic, tomatoes, and collards

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    About Dianne

    Dianne Wenz is a Certified Holistic Health Coach, Vegan Lifestyle Coach, Plant-Based Diet Nutrition Specialist, and Plant-Based Chef, as well as the author of Truly Healthy Vegan Cookbook.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Becky Striepe

      December 26, 2016 at 11:53 am

      This looks like a delicious way to kick off 2017!

    2. Ginny McMeans

      December 26, 2016 at 12:05 pm

      What a different Hoppin' John! I am going to love making this one too.

    3. Mary Ellen @ VNutrition

      December 26, 2016 at 12:28 pm

      I've never heard of Hoppin' John but this sure does look delicious!

    4. Amy Katz from Veggies Save The Day

      December 26, 2016 at 6:36 pm

      Dianne, this is so perfect for New Year's Day! I already have some lucky 2017 black-eyed peas from Rancho Gordo ready to go!

    5. Dianne

      December 27, 2016 at 10:15 am

      Thanks, Amy! Enjoy!

    6. Dianne

      December 27, 2016 at 10:15 am

      It's a Southern dish. I hadn't heard of it until about 5 years ago. Now it's a yearly tradition!

    7. Dianne

      December 27, 2016 at 10:15 am

      Thanks, Ginny! I hope you enjoy it!

    8. Dianne

      December 27, 2016 at 10:16 am

      Thank you, Becky!

    9. Jenn

      December 27, 2016 at 7:21 pm

      We always eat something with black eyed peas for New Year's too. Love the idea of adding it to a tofu scramble. Looks great!

    10. Vegan Heaven

      December 28, 2016 at 10:30 am

      I absolutely LOVE tofu scramble and this one looks amazing, Dianne! I love that you added black-eyed beans. What a great combo!! I'm definitely saving this recipe. 🙂

    11. Jackie of Vegan Yack Attack

      December 28, 2016 at 11:12 am

      I always forget this tradition! And I love your version with the scramble (and Yellowbird <3), looks great!

    12. Kristina

      December 29, 2016 at 12:26 pm

      this sounds fantastic! if EVERYONE enjoyed this tradition this year... (hopeful for a better 2017!) 🙂

    13. Aimee | Wallflower Kitchen

      December 29, 2016 at 4:45 pm

      Love tofu scramble! This looks delicious 🙂

    14. Linda @ Veganosity

      December 30, 2016 at 5:39 pm

      This is totally my kind of breakfast. Looks amazing!

    15. Dianne

      December 31, 2016 at 12:35 pm

      Thank you, Linda!

    16. Dianne

      December 31, 2016 at 12:36 pm

      Thank you, Aimee!

    17. Dianne

      December 31, 2016 at 12:36 pm

      Thanks, Kristina! I agree – everyone should have black-eyed peas and maybe 2017 will be better than 2016.

    18. Dianne

      December 31, 2016 at 12:38 pm

      Thank you, Jackie!

    19. Dianne

      December 31, 2016 at 12:38 pm

      Thank you, Sina!

    20. Dianne

      December 31, 2016 at 12:38 pm

      Thank you, Jenn!

    21. Alisa Fleming

      December 31, 2016 at 5:29 pm

      This dish does double duty for health & well-being - so high in plant protein and good New Year luck!

    22. Dianne

      January 02, 2017 at 10:25 am

      I agree, Alisa!

    23. Daureen M

      May 30, 2023 at 5:01 pm

      This recipe sounds great. But, since I always have kale on hand, and have never used collard greens, would kale be a good substitute?

    24. Dianne

      May 30, 2023 at 5:58 pm

      Yes, kale will work.

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    Hi! I'm Dianne Wenz, a Board-Certified Health Vegan Health and Lifestyle Coach. I empower my clients to build new habits so they can reach their healthy living goals. I love to show others how easy it is to live a vegan lifestyle as well as how to cook deliciously easy plant-based meals. Contact me today to learn more and to schedule a complimentary breakthrough session!

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