I’ve been doing a lot more cooking over the last couple of years, since I have more time at home than Karen (for the time being). I’ve been wanting to make red beans and rice because I know it’s something Karen likes, but the last recipe I tried seemed like a lot of work and the results weren’t that exciting. I found a recipe for “Easy Red Beans and Rice” which isn’t authentic at all (no celery? tomatoes? really?) but did seem like less work. I added seasonings from the Chef John recipe, and here’s what I came up with. Karen declared it a success. (I’m not sure it saved me much work over the first recipe, though.)
Ingredients
- 16oz kielbasa, cut diagonally into ¼ inch slices
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 1 clove minced garlic
- 2 (15oz) cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (16oz) can petite diced tomatoes
- 1 (4oz) can diced green chilies
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp dried thyme
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp cayenne
- salt to taste
- 2 green onions, chopped
Directions
- Start cooking 2 cups rice
- In a large skillet over low heat, cook sausage until it starts to brown, and the oils coat the bottom of the skillet.
- Stir in onion, green pepper, and celery; saute until tender.
- Pour in garlic and beans and tomatoes and chilies (with juice). Add seasonings. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.
- Remove bay leaves.
- Serve over rice, with green onion and hot sauce to taste.