Welcome!

Wow! 2020 already! This last year has been quite a rollercoaster....pretty sure I was upside down a couple times. But anyway, happy new year and on to why we are here.....

Welcome to Brake Check! What you will find here is a little bit of food (known here as a Brake Check)and a whole lot of travel (denoted as the Next Yardstick)

A little about me....Hi! I'm Crystal! Mom of 4 boys and a trucker's wife.  I have worked in management, and I have worked for myself designing and creating custom decals, tumblers, and jewelry. A month ago, I joined my hubby on the truck full time, running flatbed coast to coast...I have always wanted to travel more.

While cooking has always been a task I enjoy, cooking on the truck presents a unique challenge. Space is limited inside this Kenworth. We have a small microwave. Then, we added a Keurig because, well, mama needs her coffee! But, we still needed something to actually cook with.

It's just not feasible, or healthy for that matter, to eat out of the truck stops every day. What could I possibly put on the truck that wouldn't take up alot of space AND would give me the flexibility to cook a variety of foods?

An Instant Pot! I know, I know...that's nothing new. Lots of people have them, including lots of truckers. However, it's not what tool you are using, it's HOW you use it. I am working on converting somebody my tried and true recipes over to the Instant Pot, as well as coming up with more on the fly! So climb on in and buckle up!

New Years' Day has us in Utah, awaiting delivery in the morning. We fought rain, snow, and high winds to get here, but we made it. And I already know what I am cooking! I've had it planned out since we were home for Christmas....

Black-eyed peas with ham and cornbread! Even though we aren't in the south right now, it's tradition! Many Southerners will tell you this meal dates back to the Civil War. Black-eyed peas were thought to be animal feed and not fit for humans, certainly not worthy of General Sherman's Union troops. When Union soldiers raided the Confederates' food supplies, they took everything except the peas and salted pork. The Confederates considered themselves lucky to be left with those meager supplies, and survived the winter. Peas then became symbolic of luck. 

You will only need a few things to make this goodness happen:

Dried black-eyed peas

Cubed ham

Water

Olive oil

Seasonings

If you are making this dish at home, feel free to toss in some chopped collard greens or even kale. I will not be adding them simply because I don't have the room to store lots of fresh produce.

For the truck, I make smaller dishes so that we eat all of it in 2 meals or less. If you are making this at home or for more than two people, double the ingredients, but DO NOT double the cook time. More on this in another post. Moving on...

Cubed ham and dried black eyed peas. Simple enough, right? Both of these are 1 pound packages and way more food than we need right now. I will use half of each item and save the rest for another meals....ham and eggs for breakfast? Yes, please!

Here's the seasonings I used. Yes, I have nearly every spice I had at home on the truck. How else can I cook like I'm at home?

Salt & pepper, smoked paprika, onion powder, bay leaves, minced garlic, beef boullion, and creole seasoning. Any good southern kitchen has creole seasoning. Well, at least mine does.

Set your IP to Sauté. Add Olive oil to coat the pan. Toss in minced garlic and warm until fragrant. Next, add the cubed ham. Stirring frequently, brown the ham slightly. This is important and adds flavor to the finished dish.

Leaving the IP on Sauté, add water and boullion powder, or stock. I prefer to have boullion powder on the truck because I can control how much is needed, and I don't have to store leftover stock in our tiny fridge. At home, I still use the powder, but nothing beats homemade stock...yum! Add the rest of your spices and give it a quick stir. Now all that's left is to add the black eyed peas. Once those are in the IP, give it one more stir and secure the lid. Be sure to turn the release valve to SEALING. 

Now, select PRESSURE COOK - HIGH and MORE. Set timer and walk away! No soaking. No cooking for hours. No constantly making sure there is enough water. Just a few minutes of prep, and the wonderful gadget does the rest!

In a few minutes, the pressure valve will slide up into place and cooking commences. Once the timer goes off, hit CANCEL to turn off the IP and natural release pressure for 20 minutes. During this time, your food is still cooking. 

Once time has elapsed, turn release valve to VENTING. If you are cooking in a truck, or under your kitchen cabinets, place a kitchen towel over the release valve then quickly turn it into position. The towel helps to dissipate the steam instead of it shooting straight up. Be sure all pressure has released, remove your lid. But beware! The smells coming at you are AMAZING!

Just enough water left in the pan that it isn't soupy. Perfection! Serve this up with some cornbread (I will show you how to make IP cornbread soon!) and ring in the new year Southern style! 

Be sure and check back regularly to see where we are and what's cooking on our next Brake Check!

3s & 8s,

Crystal