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Related Cooking Notes

New Orleans–Style Red Beans

Ingredients

  • 1 pound red kidney beans

  • Soak (optional)

    • 6 cups water

    • 2 tbsp kosher salt

  • Saute first

    • 1 tbsp vegetable oil or lard

    • 1 lb cooked andouille sausage, cut into 1/2-inch disks

  • Saute second

    • 4 ribs celery, finely chopped

    • 1 large onion, finely chopped

    • 1 bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped

    • Salt and pepper

  • Saute third

    • 4 medium cloves garlic, minced

  • Saute fourth

    • 1/2 tsp to 1 tbsp ground cayenne pepper (depending on preference)

    • 1 tsp ground sage

    • Freshly ground black pepper

  • Pressure cook

    • 4 cups water (or low-sodium chicken broth)

    • 1 tsp kosher salt

    • 3 bay leaves

    • 4 sprigs fresh thyme

    • 1 smoked ham hock (optional)

  • Season (optional)

    • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

    • Hot sauce

Directions

  1. Rinse the beans. Optionally soak the beans in salted water for 4 to 8 hours. Rinse the beans again after soaking.

  2. Heat oil or lard over medium-high heat. Cook the andouille sausage, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. About 5 minutes.

  3. Add celery, onion, and bell pepper, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring regularly, until vegetables have softened and are just starting to brown. About 8 minutes.

  4. Add garlic and cook, stirring regularly, until fragrant. About 1 minute.

  5. Add cayenne pepper, sage, and a generous 10-12 grinds of fresh black pepper. Cook, stirring regularly, until fragrant. About 30 seconds.

  6. Add the beans, water, salt, bay leaves, thyme. Ensure that the water covers the beans (if not add more). Add the ham hock.

  7. Cook the beans.

    • If using a pressure cooker and the beans are not pre-soaked, cook on high for 30 mins with a natural release.

    • If using a pressure cooker and the beans are pre-soaked, cook on high for 10 mins with a natural release.

  8. Continue to cook with lid off, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has thickened and turned creamy. If the pot starts to look dry before the stew turns creamy, add a cup of water and continue simmering. Repeat as necessary until desired level of creaminess is achieved.

  9. Discard bay leaves and thyme.

  10. Season to taste with apple cider vinegar, hot sauce, salt, and pepper.

Notes

  • For best texture, let cool and refrigerate overnight. Reheat the next day, adding a little water to loosen to desired consistency.

  • Serve red beans over steamed white rice.

Estimated Nutrition

  • XXX

References

History

  • 2019.05.15 Wed. Used 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth and 2 tsp of kosher salt when pressure cooking and it was WAY too salty. Reduced the amount of salt in the recipe to 1 tsp.

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