Here’s my recipe for red beans and rice, minus the meat and whatever else usually accompanies the beans here.
Ingredients
- 1 lb dry red kidney beans
- 1 gallon of water (1/2 for soaking, 1/2 for cooking), plus a little extra
- 5 cloves of garlic or so
- 1 large onion
- 1 large sweet pepper
- 3 or 4 ribs of celery
- 2 or 3 bay leaves
- 2 t salt
- 1 t thyme
- 1/2 t oregano
- 1/4 t cayenne pepper
- 1/4 t black pepper
- 1/4 t cumin
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 t liquid smoke *
- 1 T red wine vinegar *
Instructions
Sort, rinse, and soak the beans overnight in half the water. Drain and re-rinse them, put them in the remaining clean water, and bring them to a boil. Be sure to stir them very frequently, or they’ll stick and burn. If the top foams up, you can scoop the foam off and discard it.
Meanwhile, crush the garlic and very finely chop the onion, pepper, and celery. When the beans have been boiling for about an hour, add all those things. Stir it all together, and there should be just enough water to cover everything. If there isn’t, add some.
Let the pot return to a boil, then reduce the heat and add all the remaining ingredients except the vinegar. The measurements of the seasonings are approximate, so you should add them gradually, and according to your own taste.
Simmer, again stirring very frequently, until the beans reach a thick, creamy consistency. The green of the celery and sweet pepper will gradually become more subdued, and the whole mixture will eventually be a light brown. If the mixture starts getting too thick before it turns creamy enough, stir in some more water, a little bit at a time. Add the vinegar a few minutes before turning off the heat.
I like to serve them over brown rice. A good serving proportion is one scoop of rice covered in a scoop and a half of beans.
Don’t eat the bay leaves.
* The liquid smoke emulates the smoky flavor of the sausage that is normally included in red beans. Be careful: a little goes a long way. The vinegar replaces the “pickle meat” (another common ingredient in New Orleans red beans), which, as far as I can tell, has no flavor besides what is obtainable from vinegar.