Red Beans And Rice Louisiana Style Recipes

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.

RED BEANS AND RICE, LOUISIANA-STYLE

Steps:

• Put the beans and ham hocks in a large bowl and add cold water to cover, to a level about two inches above the tops of the beans. Cover and let stand overnight.
• Drain the beans and ham hocks, reserving the water in which they soaked. Put the beans and ham hocks in a kettle. Add enough additional water to the soaking water to make eight cups. Add the water to the beans and ham hocks. Bring to the boil and cook, uncovered, two hours, stirring occasionally from the bottom.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a skillet and add the garlic, onions, green peppers and celery. Cook, stirring, until the mixture is wilted. Add this to the beans. Add the parsley, cayenne pepper, bay leaf, thyme, Tabasco sauce, sugar, salt, pepper and tomatoes.
• As the beans cook, preheat the broiler to high. Place the sausage pieces on a rack and cook about 10 minutes, turning often. Add the sausage pieces to the beans for the last 30 minutes of cooking.
• Scoop out about one cup of the beans and their liquid and put them in a food processor or electric blender. Blend thoroughly. Return this mixture to the beans. Remove the bay leaf.
• Spoon one serving of rice into each of eight hot soup bowls. Cover with beans. Sprinkle with chopped scallions and serve with a little hot vinegar on the side, to be added, if desired, according to taste.

LOUISIANA RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• In a 4- or 5-qt. slow cooker, combine the first 11 ingredients. Cook, covered, on low until vegetables are tender, 3-4 hours. , Stir before serving. Remove bay leaf. Serve with green onions and rice. Freeze option: Discard bay leaf and freeze cooled bean mixture in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally and adding a little broth or water if necessary. Serve as directed.

AUTHENTIC, NO SHORTCUTS, LOUISIANA RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• Place the beans and water into a slow cooker. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the sausage in the skillet; remove from the skillet with a slotted spoon and transfer to the slow cooker. Reserve drippings. Add onion, green pepper, jalapeno pepper and garlic to the drippings; cook and stir until tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer everything from the skillet to the slow cooker.
• Season the mixture with pepper and Creole seasoning. Add the fresh basil leaves and ham hock. Cover and cook on low for about 8 hours, or until beans are tender. If the bean mixture seems too watery, take the lid off the slow cooker and set heat to High to cook until they reach a creamy texture.

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.