Red Beans and Rice

Lest you think that we consume a stick of butter daily in this household, and based on the recipes I’ve posted so far you could easily reach that conclusion, I’m going to try to post some lower-in-fat recipes that are more typical of the way we really eat around here. This is a quick method for making Red Beans & Rice that I’ve tweaked to our personal tastes over the years.

Today being Monday and me being tired, I neglected to take photos of the ingredients and steps. I’m starting to think all those photos may be overkill anyway. But this one is easy, so here we go.

Here’s what you need:

1 tblsp olive oil
1 medium or 1/2 a large onion
2-3 cloves garlic
1 medium or 1/2 a large bell pepper
2-3 stalks celery
1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
2 tblsp fresh parsley, chopped
2 cans light red kidney beans, drained
2 cans diced tomatoes in juice
14 oz package turkey kielbasa, sliced
2 cups water
1 cup rice
salt and pepper to taste
Tabasco (optional), to finish

Here’s what you do:

I use a large, deep skillet with a cover (like a chicken fryer) for this recipe. Start by chopping the onion, bell pepper and celery and mince the garlic. Heat the olive oil, add the chopped veggies and saute until soft, about 5-7 minutes. Add the thyme, parsley, salt and pepper to taste. Add the beans, tomatoes with their juice and kielbasa. Taste for seasoning and adjust if needed. Reduce the heat to low, cover and let it simmer while you prepare the rice.

Bring the water to a boil, add salt (about 1/2 tsp) and rice. Stir well. Reduce heat to low and cover. Cook approximately 20-22 minutes until all water is absorbed. Remove the pan from heat and fluff the rice with a fork.

To serve, spoon 1/2 to 1 cup rice into each individual bowl. Spoon the red bean mixture over the rice. I add 4 or 5 splashes of Tabasco to mine. But then I like spicy food.  BeeBop, not so much.

Serve some crusty garlic bread on the side.

Enjoy!