Red Beans and Rice

Red Beans and Rice

What you'll need

  • 1 pound red kidney beans, dry
  • 1 unit onion, large
  • 1 unit bell pepper, green
  • 5 ribs celery
  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 1 unit smoked ham hock
  • 1 1/2 pounds andouille
  • 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
  • 2 leaves bay leaf
  • 5 dashes Tabasco
  • 2 dashes Worcestershire
  • 5 dashes Ball's Cajun seasoning

Soak the beans for this Louisiana classic on a Sunday, cook on a Monday, serve on a Tuesday.

Serves: 8

Cooking time: 4 hours

  1. Soak the beans overnight, to reduce fartiness.
  2. Bring the beans to a rolling boil, then boil for about an hour, until they're tender but not falling apart. (Make sure to keep them covered with water at all times.
  3. While beans are boiling, chop up onions, celery and bell pepper (the "trinity") and put in one bowl. Mince the garlic and put that in another bowl. Slice the andouille.
  4. Sauté the trinity until the onions are translucent, then add the garlic and sauté for two more minutes.
  5. When the beans are done, drain and rinse them, then drop them in with the trinity and the garlic.
  6. Hit it with everything else: the ham hock, the andouille, the thyme and bay leaves, your dashes of Tabasco and Worcestershire, your salt and Cajun seasoning. (Note, though, that this is going to simmer forever, so the flavors — and the salt — will concentrate.)
  7. Bring to boil, reduce heat to simmer, and cook for at least 2-3 hours, until everything gets creamy and the ham hock is starting to come off the bone. Taste for seasonings as you go, and stir every few minutes, to keep the bottom from burning.
  8. Cool, refrigerate, then serve the next day over white rice, with a side of French bread and a cold lager.

Submitted by: Joel

Thanks to: Gumbo Pages