My brother Patrick and his wife Stacy have been told that they don't really cook anything that doesn't involve a large black pot or cauldron - and they don't really cook unless it involves feeding a small army. Fortunately, not all of their recipes qualify as an INDULGENCE. Their Louisiana Red Beans and Rice are high in fiber and low in fat and can be prepared as a vegetarian main course - as long as you hold the sausage. These red beans freeze well for a cold winter's night - or a Sunday afternoon tailgate party. Laissez les bon temps rouler!

Louisiana Red Beans and Rice

Serves: About 12

Cooking Time: 2-3 hours

Difficulty: Easy, but time-consuming

Louisiana Red Beans and Rice

By Patrick and Stacy Bertinelli

Pat and I don't make a lot of red beans and rice for recreational consumption. Our argument is, if you're going to spend 4 hours cooking, might as well go all the way and make gumbo. That said, tackling red beans and rice is a great way to ease yourself into cauldron-cooking. Like grits, red beans have a wide margin for error - it's pretty hard to screw them up; they freeze well and they're relatively inexpensive. Plus, you can make them vegan, vegetarian and kosher. Or you can add sausage and make them... well, you can make them with sausage which is second only to bacon in my book for pork-product goodness. 

A word of warning before we get started: Some people will say you should buy kidney beans, but we prefer small red beans. It'll say so on the bag: "small red beans." I think kidney beans impart a slightly tangier flavor that doesn't merge well with spices, and I think the red beans cook more evenly and quickly, but that's just me. So without further ado...

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

• Servings - About 12
• Amount Per Serving: 1 cup of beans, .75 cup of rice
• Calories per Serving: 280
• Total Fat (without sausage): 0.4 grams
• Total Carbs (without sausage): 56.2 grams
• Dietary Fiber: 3.4 grams
• Protein: 12.1 grams

TOOLS FOR RED BEANS AND RICE

• big pot
• small pot
• knives
• wooden spoon, slotted spoon, spatula, your preferred stirring medium

INGREDIENTS FOR RED BEANS AND RICE

• 1-2 gallons water
• one bag of SMALL RED BEANS
• one medium white onion, chopped
• two green bell peppers, chopped
• three pieces of celery, chopped
• 4-8 cloves of garlic, diced
• 1 tablespoon parsley flakes
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons black pepper
• 1 tablespoon cayenne
• OPTIONAL: 1 tablespoon of Blair's Cajun Death Rain. 1 pound of smoked sausage or andouille, grilled and cut into quarter-inch slices.

DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING RED BEANS AND RICE

Sort and rinse your beans - make sure you get rid of any rocks. Put your beans in your big pot and cover with 3 inches of water. Allow this to soak for 2 hours. (Drink a beer, make a muffaletta, chop your vegetables, do some laundry). Then, turn stove on high and heat the beans in their water until boiling. Take your slotted spoon or a big measuring cup, and remove about half of your beans. Put them in the small pot and cover (I used to think this was weird, but it ensures that not all of your beans go to mush and I think it's a good practice). Add onions, bell pepper, celery, garlic and parsley to the boiling beans and let them come back to a hard boil. Reduce heat but keep them rolling for about 15 minutes. Add a cup of water and stir well. Let it come back to a boil. Add your spices (including the OPTIONAL Blair's Cajun Death Rain). Then add the reserved beans, and if desired, the OPTIONAL sausage (just remember that sausage pushes it out of vegetarian-land and into indulgence-world). Let it simmer for an hour or two. Just remember to stir it up every 15 minutes or so, and if you feel like the water is getting low or you're scraping sludge off the bottom, add another cup of water and throttle back that heat. If you let the water level get too low, your red beans will take on the consistency of paste. We like ours a little soupy. Serve over fluffy white rice with a side of French bread. 

* This recipe was adapted from 'Dat Little New Orleans Creole Cookbook' by Chef Remy.