Red Beans and Rice

Red Beans and Rice is a staple to Louisiana Cuisine which is traditionally cooked on Mondays. What better way to make Houston feel more like home than to cook a nice big homestyle meal that was a classic in my household growing up.  I think Matt has grown quite fond of the Louisiana inspired meals cause he now has the best of both worlds (Texas and Louisiana) whenever he wants. Something I forgot to mention is that with all of this cooking and eating, it doesn't come without a price... so I don't recommend making a big meal every night or you will really start to pack on the pounds.

All you need is a large saute pan to cook the vegetables and a 5qt pot to simmer the beans for a while, another pot for rice.

Cook Time: 2 1/2 Hours
Yields: 5 servings
Calls to Mom and Brother: 2 Total


INGREDIENTS:

• 1 Package Red Kidney Beans (soaked overnight in water)
• 1 Package of Hot Smoked Sausage
• 1/4 Cup Pickled Pork
• 1 Medium Onion diced
• 2 Celery Stalks
• 1/2 Bell Pepper
• 4 Cloves of Garlic
• 2 TBSP Vegetable Oil
• 2 Bay Leaves
• 2 TBSP Dried Thyme
• 1 TSP Cayenne Pepper
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 4 Cups Chicken Broth
• 1 Cup Green Onions
• 2 Cups Rice

PREPARATION:

Heat 2 TBSP Oil in a saute pan over med-high heat, add onions, celery, bell peppers, and cook approx 5 minutes or until transparent. Add salt and pepper to sweat out the juices of the onions and to flavor. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant. Drop in the bay leaves, thyme, and cayenne pepper and stir.

All the veggies mingling with the meat!

Put the Beans and the chicken broth into the pot and bring to a boil. Toss the pork and sausage in with the vegetables until beans start to boil then add everything to the pot and continue to boil for 1 hour stirring occasionally,  Remove lid and start to smush beans along the side of the pot with your spoon to mash them. Return lid and boil for another 1 1/2 hours.

Everyone in the hot tub!!

After the second hour you can now prepare the rice and any other sides (in this case we are making Jiffy Corn muffins, according to package instructions). Bring 3 cups of salted water to a boil and add 1 1/2 Cups of rice, put a lid on it and let boil for 18-20 minutes. Turn heat off and let sit for 10 minutes with lid on. Add 1/2 cup of diced green onions and fluff with a fork.

TO SERVE:

Spoon rice into a bowl and cover with the Red Beans, garnish with green onions and with a corn muffin, ENJOY!!

SOME HELPFUL TIPS:

• If the beans become too thick you can add water to get desired consistency.
• If you dont have time to pay attention to the beans...put all ingredients into a crock pot and let her rip for four hours on high heat!