OH. MY. STARS. it’s been too long.i’ve had three posts raring to go since late January and then things got busy and the last thing I’ve wanted to do when I got home was turn on my computer…and then I got into Game Of Thrones on Amazon… but it’s time. I miss blogging about food, and taking pictures of food, and just generally talking about food. (plus… my pretty friend Fancy flattered me by asking when I was going to post something new. Fancy, here you go!)
This recipe was supposed to come out around the time of Mardi Gras, since what’s more Louisiana that Red Beans and Rice? Even if the weather has gotten a little warmer (but not much! what’s up with the freaskishly cold weather??) and the confetti and beads are long gone from Beale Street, this recipe still tastes divine. It’s a combination of my grandmother’s classic Louisiana recipe, the Cook’s Illustrated test kitchen version, and the one from the River Road Recipes Cookbook. Read on.
What you Need:
To cook:
Andoille Sausage (1 package, or a 1.5 lbs)
1 tablespoon of oil
2 onions
5 garlic cloves
1 green pepper
2 ribs of celery
1 cup of Camellia brand dried red beans (washed, dried, and soaked)
2 table spoons beef stock
3-5 cups of water
2 squirts of ketchup
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
Salt
Pepper
To Serve
1 bunch green onions
Hot sauce
1/2 cup of rice per serving
What to Do:
Obviously, begin by rinsing and soaking the beans (overnight is best, but 6 hours will do in a pinch. Basically, you want them full of water and tender.)
Dice the garlic, green pepper, onion, and celery. In a large stock pot, sautee’ the onion in the oil until translucent then add in the other three ingredients to release the flavor, stirring for 1-2 minutes.
At the same time, boil the sausage, pricking after a 5-7 minutes to release the oil. I think this makes it just a little bit healther since it gets rid of the excess fat. Once the sausage is parboiled, cut it into 1/2″ or 1″ rounds and brown in a skillet.
Remove from the heat and put it aside to add in later.
Add the Stock and liquid to the large stock pot with the vegetables. Add in the bay leaf, the red beans, the red vinegar, the squeezes of ketchup for good measure, and the sausage. Simmer on low heat for 2- 2.5 hours. The longer and slower this cooks, the more flavorful and creamier the red beans will be.
Once the liquid has cooked down somewhat and the beans are soft, take about 2 cups of the beans and liquid and using a food processor or blender, puree’ that amount. Add the pureed beans back into the pot with the rest of the beans. This makes them even creamier and smooth.
Serve with hot sauce, vinegar, green onions, and white rice.
