Red Beans Rice Soul Food Recipes

RED BEANS & RICE SOUL FOOD RECIPE

Steps:

• Rinse and pick through beans, discarding any misshapen beans or debris. Place beans in large bowl. Add enough water to cover beans by at least 2 inches. Let stand overnight.
• Drain beans, discarding soaking liquid; set beans aside. Cook bacon in Dutch oven or deep large skillet until crisp. Remove bacon from pan with slotted spoon, reserving 2 Tbsp. drippings in pan. Drain bacon on paper towels. Meanwhile, add onions, peppers and garlic to reserved drippings; cook and stir 5 min. or until crisp-tender.
• Return bacon to pan with beans, ham hock, broth, 2 Tbsp. parsley, bay leaf and seasonings. Bring to boil; simmer on low heat 2 to 2-1/2 hours or until beans are tender and liquid is thickened, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, cook rice as directed on package during the last 30 min. of the bean cooking time.
• Remove ham hock and bay leaf; discard bay leaf. Shred meat from ham hock; discard bone and any fat. Stir meat into bean mixture. Serve over rice; top with remaining parsley.

CHEF JOHN'S RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• Place beans in a large container and cover with several inches of cool water; let stand 8 hours to overnight. Drain and rinse.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir sausage in hot oil until oils slightly release from sausage and edges brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir onion, celery, and poblano pepper into sausage; cook and stir until vegetables soften and start to turn translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir garlic into sausage mixture; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Stir red beans, chicken broth, ham hock, bay leaves, black pepper, thyme, cayenne pepper, and hot sauce into the sausage mixture; bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 hours. Add salt and continue simmering until beans are soft, meat is tender, and desired consistency is reached, 1 1/2 to 2 hours more. Season with salt.
• Spoon rice into bowls, ladle red beans mixture over rice, and top with green onion.

AUTHENTIC LOUISIANA RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• Rinse beans, and then soak in a large pot of water overnight.
• In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Cook onion, bell pepper, garlic, and celery in olive oil for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Rinse beans, and transfer to a large pot with 6 cups water. Stir cooked vegetables into beans. Season with bay leaves, cayenne pepper, thyme, sage, parsley, and Cajun seasoning. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer for 2 1/2 hours.
• Stir sausage into beans, and continue to simmer for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, prepare the rice. In a saucepan, bring water and rice to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve beans over steamed white rice.

RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the onions, celery and peppers. Season with salt and black pepper. Cook until the onions are soft and translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 45 to 60 seconds.
• Add the beans and water to the pot. Add the cayenne, white pepper, smoked paprika, bay leaves and green onions. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
• Discard the bay leaves. Use a potato masher to mash the beans in the pot until the mixture looks creamy. Season well with hot sauce. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt and black pepper. Ladle into warmed bowls with cooked rice and serve with additional hot sauce on the side.

LOUISIANA RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• Place the dried beans in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Soak the beans overnight in the refrigerator.
• Drain the beans and put them in a large heavy pot with the ham hocks, adding just enough cold water to cover (about 2 quarts). Add the onion, celery, green pepper, cayenne, parsley, thyme, bay leaves, garlic, green onions, and several shakes of red pepper sauce; give everything a good stir to combine. Simmer, uncovered, until the beans are tender and starting to thicken, about 21/2 hours. You want the beans to be almost overcooked, like they are getting ready to burst. Stir the beans occasionally to prevent scorching on the bottom of the pot. Add about 1 cup of water toward the end of cooking if the mixture appears too thick or dry.
• Mash about 1 cup of the cooked beans against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon, this makes the broth thick and creamy. Toss in the sausages and cook for another 30 minutes to heat them through. Adjust the seasoning, if needed. Serve the red beans in a wide bowl over some steamed white rice and garnished with chopped green onion.

CLASSIC RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• Rinse the beans under cold water in a colander. Throw away any broken beans or pebbles. Put the beans into a large bowl and add enough water to cover them by about 2 inches. Soak overnight or for at least 8 hours. (Quick method = bring the beans and enough water to cover them by 2 inches to a boil in a large pot over high heat and cook for 2 minutes, then remove from the heat and cover tightly, let stand for 1 hour.).
• Heat up the oil in a big, heavy stockpot over med-high heat. Add the onions, bell peppers and garlic - cook, stirring, for about 4 minutes or until softened. Add the sausage, salt, Creole seasoning, cayenne, black pepper, thyme and the bay leaves. Cook, stirring, for about 4-5 minutes or until the sausage is browned. Add the ham hock and cook for 3 minutes.
• Drain the beans and add them to the pot. pour in enough stock to cover the whole mixture by about 1 inch. Bring this to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to med-low and simmer, uncovered, until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally - approx 2 hours. Remove and throw away the bay leaves.
• Mash up about 1/4 of the bean mixture. This will thicken the juices. Remove the ham hock and let cool slightly. Slice the meat from the bone, throwing away the skin and bones. Return the meat to the pot and heat it through.
• Spoon the rice into bowls and top with the beans. Relax and enjoy!

PERFECT RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• In a very large mixing bowl (or a 12-quart non-reactive pot, or two 6- to 8-quart pots), combine all ingredients except ham, sausage and rice. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
• When ready to cook, place all in a pot with the ham and sausage.
• Bring to a boil, then lower heat, cover, and strongly simmer (preferably without skimming), for 1 hour; stir as needed to keep beans from sticking.
• Reduce heat and slowly simmer, covered, between 2 and 4 hours, or until mixture is very thick and beans are tender.
• During the slow-simmering process, stir frequently, especially toward end of cooking time, adding more water to pot only if dish seems too dry.
• About 1 hour before done, periodically mash some of the beans with a potato masher, scraping pan bottom clean after each mashing; try to mash about 40 percent of the beans.
• Serve immediately over rice or, preferably, let beans cool and refrigerate overnight.
• Reheat for serving.