In fact, rice and sugar cane werre the area's main agricultural products so rice was served at nearly every dinner.
My mother cooked rice and beans of some variety, rice and blackeye peas, rice and gravy if meat or chicken was on the menu, and even tomato gravy and rice—what we would call a vegetarian dish.
In case you're wondering why beans and rice are usually server together, it's because together they make a complete protein. That's why so many people are now buying both in bulk because they fear an upcoming food shortage due to so many factors in the world today.
In the event there was ever any leftover rice, then delicious, buttery rice pudding made with cinnamon, raisins, butter, and an egg for binding was baked in the oven. The aroma was mouthwatering as was the dessert itself.
Prep Today for Sunday Dinner
Whenever you cook dried beans or peas, you must soak them overnight. First, wash your beans, picking out any bad ones. For red beans, you can buy them at any price point.
I usually buy Camellia Brand Dried Red Beans at my local store. They're a product from New Orleans and cost more than generic, but I find there aren't any "rejects" in the bag.
I've included a link to where you can buy them on Amazon if you want to try them.
About the Pork Ingredient
The recipe calls for a ham ingredient. The preferred ingredient is something many of you may not have purchased before, and that is ham hocks. My mom used a ham hock or pickled pork for seasoning when she cooked dried beans. I haven't seen pickled pork in years so I assume it is no longer sold.
Ham hocks are the shank end of a hog's leg. In my mom's day, those were often given away or sold for a quarter. I bought a package for New Year's blackeye peas and was shocked to see they were $1.95 a pound.
The ham hocks Mom always bought were smoked so that smoky pork flavor infused the beans and made them extra delicious.
If you can't find ham hocks, you can use a ham bone from a smoked ham, but not if you used a sweet glaze when you baked the ham.
Alternative pork products include the fat trimmed from a baked ham, but not if the ham was baked with a sweet glaze.
Along with the ham ingredient, which is for seasoning, you'll be adding chunks of smoked sausage near the end of cooking.
I grew up eating white rice, grown locally. As an adult, I switched to whole grain rice, what some call brown rice. Several years ago, I started buying basmati or jasmine rice. (Yes, I still cook a lot of rice.)
I usually buy Royal Brown Basmati Rice which you can find at Amazon or perhaps in your local store.
You can use any rice you like, but you need to cook it about a half hour before you plan to serve your red beans and rice.
Now, let's get to the recipe.
Louisiana Red Beans and Rice
Ingredients
1 large onion chopped
1 ham hock or other port product
1 Rotel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chiles, original or mild
6 cups of water
Salt to taste (about 1 tablespoon of regular table salt, i.e., Morton Salt, or about 2 tablespoons of coarse salt per pound—better to use a little less and adjust to taste when finished cooking)
1/2 to 1 tablespoon chili powder (use more or less according to your taste)
1-2 cloves of garlic finely minced or pressed, or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 pounds smoked pork sausage
Instructions
1. You may use a slow cooker, Instant Pot, or large Dutch oven on the stove. Your choice, but I'll be giving directions for using a slow cooker.
2. Soak beans overnight. The next morning, drain and rinse the beans and place in the slow cooker.
3. Add water, salt, chile, onion, garlic, and ham hock.
4. Set on slow to cook for 10 to 12 hours or overnight.
5. When the beans are about 4 hours away from being done, it's time to saute the smoked sausage. Cut into 1 inch chunks and saute to remove some of the grease. Drain the sausage and add to the slow cooker along with the can of Rotel. Cook another 4 hours.
6. Cook your rice when you're about 30 minutes to an hour away from serving the beans.
7. When beans are done, taste to adjust the salt. serve over the rice.
8. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.
Takeaway Truth
It takes much less time to put this together to cook than it took for me to write this. Whenever I cook my mother's red beans and rice, it always takes me back to my childhood.
Reminder Note: Amazon Links in my post, if clicked, may earn me a tiny commission.
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