Red Beans and Rice
We've been to New Orleans a couple of times for Mardi Gras, and love the atmosphere and attitude there. One of our favorite recipes is for a good Red Beans and Rice. Who better to take guidance from than Emeril Lagasse?
There are purists out there who would balk at using canned beans rather than dried beans, or not using ham hocks in the recipe...but as always I think you can have different versions of any recipe in your repertoire that work just fine, depending upon the amount of time or effort you wish to expend.
There is some interesting history of this dish here.
For the latest batch I made, pictured above, I indeed used canned beans - though I'll tell you how to prepare it using dried beans (and in the South, most red beans and rice purists use Camellia brand dried beans). I did use andouille sausage, along with some pancetta and smoky bacon; and yes, I used a ham hock! You can make a perfectly acceptable version without it, but I've always been a big believer in the richness that using bones in recipes lends to the final product. Frankly the pancetta and bacon are optional in my opinion, they just add more layers of flavor and give the vegetables a nice base in which to soften them. You can always use bacon grease (if you have some).
Ingredients
Makes: 6-8 servings
1 pound dried red beans, rinsed and picked through for stones (or 4 cans of red beans if using instead of dried).
1/3 cup diced pancetta
1/3 cup diced smoky bacon
1 large yellow onion, diced
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 green or red bell pepper, deseeded and diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of cayenne pepper, or a teaspoon of a good Cajun/Creole seasoning
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, roughly chopped
1/2 pound cooked smoked andouille or other sausage cut into slices
1 or 2 ham hocks (optional but I encourage using them!)
10 cups chicken stock (if using dried beans; if using canned, then about 3-4 cups works well).
3 bay leaves
6 cups cooked white rice
Chopped green onions for garnish
*See additional notes before preparing the recipe.
Instructions
Place clean dried beans in a medium pot and cover with room temperature water. Allow to soak overnight before making the beans.
If you don't have time to soak the beans overnight, that's okay; place the clean dried beans in a medium pot and cover with room temperature water. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil. As soon as the beans boil, cover, remove from heat, and allow to soak for 1 hour. Carry on with the recipe.
In a large soup pot over medium heat, cook pancetta and bacon until very crisp, about 6 minutes.
Add the onions, celery, and bell pepper and cook until vegetables are very well done, about 8 minutes. These ingredients are the "Holy Trinity" of New Orleans cooking!
Add salt, pepper, and cayenne or Cajun/Creole seasoning and stir to combine.
Stir in the garlic, parsley, thyme, sliced sausage, and ham hocks if using. Increase heat to medium-high and cook until the sausage and ham hocks are well browned, about 5 minutes. Stir frequently.
Add the softened beans or canned beans to the pot, the stock, and bay leaves. Reduce heat to low and allow to simmer for about 2 hours, uncovered, until the beans are well softened (if using canned beans, still let the dish simmer for an hour or so to really let the flavors combine).
Taste and season with more salt or pepper.
For a slightly creamier consistency mash about a third of the mixture using a big spoon or potato masher. This doesn't have to be exact, just give some of the pot a good mash, or use an immersion blender briefly. Some people use mixers or food processors, but I'm not a fan of transferring boiling liquid from the pot to a mixer...
Remove ham hocks and bay leaves.
Serve beans with white rice and a hearty garnish of sliced green onions.
For those who like things spicier, you can add a splash or two of hot sauce to individual bowls or the whole darned pot.
*A couple of notes:
Resist adding a lot of salt at first - the meats and broth are fairly salty, so you may not need to add a lot. You also may want to use unsalted or low sodium stock to better control the salt content. You can always add more salt if necessary, but once over-salted a dish can be ruined.
Try to always use chicken STOCK vs. chicken BROTH in most recipes. Stock is typically made with bones, and that imparts a richness broth just cannot compete with. If you've never made your own chicken stock, I'd encourage it - sooo delicious and you can control salt content. Look for another post soon with a recipe for that!
Some people will remove the ham hocks, discard the skin, and pick some pieces of the pork from it to put back into the dish. I don't bother with that - I just use it for overall flavoring and remove and discard the entire thing.
Regarding rice - if you haven't invested in a rice cooker, I encourage you to do so!
Here's a pic of most of the ingredients - never said I was good at food composition photos, but I view a collection of ingredients much like a painter views his or her color palette! Er...see those dried beans? Yeah well I actually used canned for the prepared dish in the interest of time. :)
