No bacon grease or extra fat here! Just beans, veggies, seasoning and, ok, some decadent andouille sausage. I took the name a little less literally though, and made a lightened up version for dinner. Today New Orleans is celebrating Fat Tuesday, during Mardi Gras, and although we can’t be there to join in on the fun, at least we can eat like we’re in the Big Easy with homemade Crock Pot Red Beans & Rice.įat Tuesday is traditionally celebrated by eating indulgent, over-the-top foods (hence FAT Tuesday) before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season begins tomorrow, Ash Wednesday. Fluffy white rice engulfed in a savory thick sauce packed with creamy beans, and salty andouille sausage. One week wasn’t nearly enough time to get our fill of this famous Southern side dish. Or a mouthwatering side of red beans & rice. Especially if it was a Mother’s Po’ Boy smothered in “debris”. There’s no shortage of restaurants in NOLA, more packed into a smaller area than a lot of cities I’ve been to, and if there was a line at the door, you knew it was worth waiting for. One of the things we enjoyed most about our trip was of course, the food. I think it it officially beat San Francisco as my favorite city in the US as I was sitting at the oldest bar in America, Lafitte’s in the French Quarter, sipping an ice cold Abita beer, and watching horse drawn carriages clop by, thinking – this is the life. With a why not attitude though, and no expectations, we packed up, headed out, and ended up having the time of our lives!įrom whooping it up on Bourbon Street with huge ass beers, to learning more about the history of the south on several plantation tours, and exploring nearly every inch of the French Quarter, Ben and I found the city, surrounding areas, and people to be simply enchanting. If you pre-soak your beans, you'll need to increase the water so that they cover the beans by about an inch or so.Have you ever taken a trip to a place you knew little or nothing about? Just gotten the urge to go, so you booked a ticket and went with only your bag and a vague idea as to what you were going to do when you got there?Ī couple years ago Ben and I did just that when we hopped aboard a plane and headed south to spend a week in the Big Easy – New Orleans.Īt the time neither of us knew a great deal about the city, except what we’d seen on the news during coverage of Hurricane Katrina, and our experience in the south was limited to sunny SoCal, Epcot Center, and watching Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood on repeat in college. For extra richness, add up to 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of butter and stir in at the end. Taste and add salt only once beans are fully cooked, and then only if it needs it. I also recommend cooking them on high instead of low. Because there are concerns with potentially undercooking kidney beans when made in a slow cooker, I recommend using the boil method of pre-soaking to rid the beans of any toxins. Sliced green onion, for garnish, optionalĬajun seasoning and hot sauce, for the tableĬook's Notes: Do not consume raw or undercooked kidney beans. NOTESġ/2 tablespoon olive oil, vegetable or canola oilġ/2 pound andouille or spicy smoked sausage cut into 1/4-inch slices If you pre-soak your beans, you'll need to increase the water so that they cover the beans by about an inch or so. Garnish with sliced green onion, if desired, and pass Cajun seasoning and hot sauce at the table.Ĭook's Notes: Do not consume raw or undercooked kidney beans. Scoop over hot, cooked rice, and serve with fresh French bread. Taste, add salt as needed, and cayenne pepper, to taste, if desired. Mash beans to form a paste and stir back into the beans. Remove 1 cup of the beans, draining the liquid back into the slow cooker. If using ham hocks, use a knife to cut slashes into the fat before adding to the slow cooker.Īdd 7 cups of heated water, cover and cook for 5 to 7 hours on high, or until beans are tender and cooked through completely. Add the oil to the skillet and saute the sausage until browned. Add the garlic, black pepper, basil and bay leaf into the vegetable mixture, stir together and transfer to the slow cooker. To that, add the onion, bell pepper, and celery and sauté until the veggies are tender. In a separate skillet, cook the bacon until the fat is rendered. Put them in a pot, bring to a boil, boil for 10 minutes, drain and transfer to a 6 quart slow cooker. Rinse and sort beans and use a quick boil method before adding them to the slow cooker.
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