Red Beans and Rice

Prep Time: 15 minutes     Cook Time: 2  1/2 hours   Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup dry red beans

1  1/3 cup rice

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1/3 yellow bell pepper, chopped

1 large celery stalk, chopped

1 large yellow onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2/3 cup vegetable stock/broth

3 bay leaves

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1/4 teaspoon coriander

1/4 teaspoon sage

1/2 teaspoon oregano

2 tablespoons olive oil

Cajun seasoning to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Soak the red beans overnight to help reduce cooking time.

2. When you are ready to begin cooking, bring the red beans to a boil in a large saucepan. Add salt and pepper to the water.

3. While the beans are being brought to a boil, chop the onion, green and yellow bell pepper, celery, and garlic.

4. When the beans begin to boil, let them cook on a low boil for about 15 minutes. After this, reduce the heat to a simmer and cover the beans. Let them cook for about an hour to an hour and a half (depends on the moodiness of the beans), stirring occasionally. Add more water as needed.

5. While the beans are cooking, begin cooking the rice as instructed on the back of the package.

6. When both the beans and rice are tender and almost done cooking, start on the vegetables. In a large skillet, coat the bottom with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the chopped onion, celery, green and yellow bell pepper, and garlic. Saute on medium high heat for about 5 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

7. Drain and add the beans to the skillet with the vegetables. Reserve the bean water.

8. Add 2/3 cup vegetable broth or stock, bay leaves, white pepper, coriander, sage, oregano, and salt, pepper, and Cajun seasoning to taste. I personally use a lot of black pepper and Cajun seasoning, so you can be very generous with these if you want to.

9. Stir the ingredients together and bring this to a low boil.

10. Once it has started to boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and let the mixture cook for about 15 minutes or until thickened. Hint: If the mixture becomes too dry, add the reserved bean water to juice it back up. 

11. Once the beans and vegetables are at the desired thickness, add the cooked rice to the mixture. Stir well and allow the different flavors to cook together for another 5 minutes.

12. When you are ready to serve, discard the bay leaves and enjoy!