Louisiana Red Beans and Rice

RhumAndJerk

Ingredients

• 6 Cup Water	• 1 lb Smoked Sausage
• 1 lb dried Red Kidney Beans	• 1 tsp Salt
• 4 Tbs Butter	• 1 Bay Leaf
• 1 Cup chopped Green Onions, including tops	• 1 Dash Red Pepper
• &#189 Cup chopped Onions	• Cumin, to taste
• 1 rib of Celery, chopped	• 3 Cup cooked White Rice
• 3 Clove Garlic, chopped	• Green Onions, chopped for garnish
• 1 Ham Bone with ham or 2 lbs. Smoked ham hocks

Instructions

In a large saucepan over high heat, bring 6 cups of water to a boil. Add beans and boil briskly for 2 minutes. Turn off heat and let the beans soak for 1 hour.

In a heavy casserole over medium heat, melt the butter and cook green onions, white onions, celery and garlic until soft but not brown. Stir in the beans and liquid, the ham bone or ham hocks, the sausage and the seasonings. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for three hours or until beans are soft. If the beans seem dry, add more hot water, a few tablespoons at a time. Stir frequently.

Remove ham bones, cut meat from the bone and return the meat to beans. Remove bay leaf.

Serve red beans with cooked rice. To garnish, sprinkle chopped green onions over the top.

Notes

So that is how the book says to do it. Now, here are my modifications.

First of all, I like to soak the beans in cold water overnight if possible. I also drain my beans and cook with fresh water. As for water, I first add one can of beer and then top off with water. I add some red bell pepper if I have it. I usually throw in some fresh parsley or thyme. You could also toss in a stiff shot of Worcestershire sauce. I do not use cumin or chili pepper (heat comes later). Do not add salt to the dish until the end. I add a pinch or a teaspoon of brown sugar in the beginning. This is not to add sweetness, but to tenderize the beans as they cook.

Now this is the part that either makes or breaks the dish, the meat that you add. First is the grease factor, if your sausage is fatty, pan-fry it some to render out some of the grease. The meat that I use is Andoulli Sausage and Cajun Tasso Ham. I do not like sausage that I call homogenized brown goo. If you do not see chunks of meat and fat, stay away. However, you may like that so use what you like. I rarely use a ham bone or ham hocks because of the Tasso, which I dice about a quarter of a pound.

I start this dish in cast iron Dutch oven on the stove and then transfer it to the egg uncovered. I place some smoking wood on the fire, like pecan or hickory. You really only need a dome temp of 225-250 since you are just boiling water. You need to stir the beans fairly often to keep the bottom from burning. Also, watch the liquid level. If you need to, add water or beer to keep everything from getting dry. I use a long handled wooden spoon through the dome opening of my small BGE. That way, I do not have to open the dome.

The heat level is another key; the Andoulli and Tasso naturally have a lot of cayenne in them so I do not add any more. The other thing here is this make enough to feed an army, unless you want to be eating very hot red beans and rice for three meals a day for a week, let each person adjust their own heat level. Tabasco is the primary table seasoning.

Have fun and let me now how this turns out for you.

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