Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Recipe 57 : Red Beans and Rice

16 ou dried red beans
1 ring (1 lb) fully cooked kielbasa
7 ou pre-chopped onions and celery
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
3/4 t. salt
1/2 t. thyme
1/2 t. cayenne pepper
2 pouches boil-in-a-bag rice

Let red beans soak overnight according to package directions.  Saute kielbasa and vegetables in large skillet until vegetables are softened.  Add garlic and cook for about 1-2 minutes.  Place all ingredients, except rice, in Crock Pot and cook on LOW for about 6 hours, or until beans are tender.  Add rice and let cook for 10-15 minutes, until rice is tender.

What a delicious recipe!  And it makes enough to feed a small army!  I changed it a bit from the original recipe.  The original recipe called for this to be a soup, but to me, red beans and rice is not supposed to be soupy.  If you would like this to be a soup, add only one bag of rice.  The directions about the rice were a bit confusing to me.  The boxes of the boil-in-a-bag rice come with 4 pouches in it.  Just use two of these pouches...it makes a lot of rice.  I also laughed when it called for the pre-chopped onions and celery.  I didn't think I was the type of person to actually buy this, but when it came down to it, I saw the package and gave in.  And it was pretty easy.  I didn't even have to cry in the kitchen while chopping the onion!  Also, I would add more cayenne pepper.  It has a nice spice to it, but I like hot, hot, hot!  So maybe double or even triple the amount of pepper if you want more of a bite to it.  I didn't have time to blog about this recipe when I made it, and now the leftovers aren't up for a photo op, so use your imagination....its just red beans and rice!  





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