I'm getting better and better at making cheap meals. Maybe it's out of necessity, or maybe I just find it fun to figure out wonderful meals for very little money! It's become a game for me! One meal my family adores is Red Beans and Rice. Now, I know that sounds awfully cheap and bland, but the "bland" part is FAR from the truth. My recipe is full of flavor and easy on your wallet. I mean, come on, a 1 pound bag of dried beans is like $1.15!
Red Beans and Rice
6 slices of bacon (chopped)
1 large onion (chopped)
2 green bell peppers (chopped)
3 stalks of celery (chopped)
4 or 5 cloves garlic (minced)
Salt and pepper to taste
2 bay leaves
A few sprigs of fresh thyme (3/4 tsp. dried if you have it, but I MUCH prefer fresh.)
1/2 tsp. cayenne
A few dashes of hot sauce (Frank's is my favorite)
A few dashes of worcestershire sauce
6 1/2 cups water*
1 lb. dry red or kidney beans (soaked)
Bring some water (this is NOT the 6 1/2 cups of water mention above!) up to a boil. Take it off the heat, and add 1 pound of dried beans. Let them soak for a few hours. (This can all be done in the morning.) Then drain and rinse.
Brown chopped bacon in a large pot. Add onion, bell peppers, celery, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook veggies until tender. Add bay leaves, thyme, cayenne, hot sauce, and worcestershire. Mix to deglaze the pan. Add water and beans. Bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover, and simmer for 1 1/2 hour (stirring every 30 minutes or so). After 1 1/2 hours, remove lid and simmer another 30 minutes or until beans have thickened. Smash half of the beans with a potato masher for more of a "gravy" consistency. Serve over your favorite rice.
*9 times out of 10, I have a partially used box of chicken or beef stock in my refrigerator. I'll use up the box by adding it to my water. If I only have 3 cups of stock, then I just add enough water to it to make 6 1/2 cups. I just figure it's a good way to use up stock and add more flavor to the beans!
Now let's have a little talk about rice:
For my family's Red Beans and Rice. I use Basmati or Texmati rice. Texmati is the practically the same as Basmati. The only difference is that Texmati is grown in the U.S. and Basmati is imported from India. Basmati/Texmati is an aged, long grain white rice. It's very fragrant and slightly floral. It's wonderful in this recipe and also in my husband's Gumbo. And just so you guys know where I stand, I have NEVER found directions on that back of a box/bag of rice that give good results. Rice is suppsed to be fluffy. So if you follow the directions on the back of your package of rice, you will very likely have extra liquid/mush on the bottom of your pot of rice. GROSS! So I always go 1/2 cup of water short when I prepare my rice. That pretty much goes for any rice I make. Going 1/2 cup short on the water ensures your rice is fluffy and that there is no cloudy goo on the bottom of the pot.
Try some Red Beans and Rice this week. You won't be disappointed... niether will your wallet!
