Best Red Beans And Rice Louisiana Style Recipes

RED BEANS AND RICE, LOUISIANA-STYLE

Steps:

• Put the beans and ham hocks in a large bowl and add cold water to cover, to a level about two inches above the tops of the beans. Cover and let stand overnight.
• Drain the beans and ham hocks, reserving the water in which they soaked. Put the beans and ham hocks in a kettle. Add enough additional water to the soaking water to make eight cups. Add the water to the beans and ham hocks. Bring to the boil and cook, uncovered, two hours, stirring occasionally from the bottom.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a skillet and add the garlic, onions, green peppers and celery. Cook, stirring, until the mixture is wilted. Add this to the beans. Add the parsley, cayenne pepper, bay leaf, thyme, Tabasco sauce, sugar, salt, pepper and tomatoes.
• As the beans cook, preheat the broiler to high. Place the sausage pieces on a rack and cook about 10 minutes, turning often. Add the sausage pieces to the beans for the last 30 minutes of cooking.
• Scoop out about one cup of the beans and their liquid and put them in a food processor or electric blender. Blend thoroughly. Return this mixture to the beans. Remove the bay leaf.
• Spoon one serving of rice into each of eight hot soup bowls. Cover with beans. Sprinkle with chopped scallions and serve with a little hot vinegar on the side, to be added, if desired, according to taste.

RED BEANS AND RICE (LOUISIANA STYLE)

Steps:

• Cover the beans with water 2 inches over beans and soak overnight. Or, bring beans to a boil for one minute, remove from heat, and soak for at least an hour. Drain beans and rinse. Put the beans back in the pot and cover them with water 2 inches above level of beans. Put over high heat to begin cooking while you prepare the other ingredients. You're going to want to chop the garlic, onion, celery, and bell pepper very finely, and the fastest and best way to do this is in a food processor. I throw the 4 peeled cloves of garlic in first, and then add the onion, quartered, and pulse until finely chopped. Add this to the pot on the stove, and then do the same thing with the celery and bell peppers, adding each to the beans. Add the remaining ingredients, except the salt and the rice. When the beans reach a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook, stirring every now and then, until they are completely tender and falling apart. This can take anywhere from 2 to 3 hours, depending upon the age of your beans. (Add more water as necessary to keep them hydrated.) When they are completely tender, add the salt to taste, and check the seasonings. Add any additional spices you want, and cook for at least 10 more minutes, until sauce is thick and beans are disintegrating. Remove the bay leaves, and serve over rice. Notes If your beans are old, they may never disintegrate, or at least not in time for dinner. What you have to do is take out a bunch of them, mash them up well, and add them back into the pot (or use a hand blender right in the pot). Then proceed as though they had fallen apart on their own. I won't tell anyone if you don't!