red beans and rice

by Linda Hopkins

Along with the Shrimp Creole that Connor requested on his birthday, I made him some classic Red Beans and Rice.

My recipe uses three types of pork; a ham hock, cured salt pork and andouille sausage.

The recipe calls for 12 ounces of cured salt pork. You’ll buy a 12-ounce package and trim off most of the fat. As you can see in the photo above, once you’ve done that, you’ll end up with about 8 ounces of pork to use for the beans. Discard the fat.

These red beans are even better if they are made the day before, refrigerated overnight, and reheated before use. Just be sure to reheat slowly and add water, if needed, to prevent them from drying out.

Oh, and I just use a simple electric rice cooker for my rice. Generally speaking, rice will triple when cooked, so 1 cup of raw rice will yield about 3 cups of cooked rice. I used 1 ½ cups dry rice for this recipe.

Red Beans and Rice

1 pound dried red kidney beans
Salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound andouille sausage *see note below
1 large red onion, peeled and diced
1 orange or yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced
3 celery ribs, diced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground sage
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 smoked ham hock
12-ounce package of cured salt pork, trimmed of major chunks of fat
4 sprigs fresh thyme
3 bay leaves
Frank’s hot sauce, to taste
Apple cider vinegar, to taste
4 ½ to 5 cups cooked white rice

*Note: If cooked andouille sausage is used, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices. If raw andouille sausage is used (that’s what I purchased), cook the whole sausages in a skillet before slicing.

Place the dry beans in a large bowl and cover with 6 cups of cold water. Add 2 tablespoons salt and stir until dissolved. Set aside at room temperature for at least 8 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse.

In a large Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the sliced andouille and cook, stirring, until lightly browned, about 7 minutes.

Add onion, bell pepper, and celery. Season with salt and cook, stirring, until the onion is soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add cayenne pepper, sage, and pepper. Cook, stirring, for another minute.

Add the drained beans and enough water to cover by about 2 inches. Then add the ham hock, the salt pork thyme, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil and reduce to a bare simmer.

Cover and cook until beans are completely tender, about 1 ½ to 2 hours.