I get a lot of requests for crockpot recipes from my facebook friends. There are always occasions when we'd like to spend a little less time in the kitchen but still enjoy a flavorful meal. This recipe for red beans and rice is perfect for the crockpot. It has simple but flavorful ingredients, is easy to assemble and the slow cooking brings out the spicy flavors of the andouille sausage and cajun spices.
I like browning the andouille sausage and sautéing the vegetables before placing them in the crockpot. But, if you're OK giving up a little of that crispiness and caramelization, you can actually skip that step and put everything in the crockpot with out any pre-cooking. You'll spend even less time in the kitchen but still get a flavorful meal.
This recipe is also good for tailgating. Once it has fully cooked, transfer the red bean mixture to a large pot and then reheat over a grill or on a small gas burner. You can also serve the rice at room temperature because the heat of red bean mixture will warm everything up.
Red Beans And Rice
serves 8
Ingredients
Crockpot
1 lb Red Kidney Beans
1 lb Andouille Sauce, sliced in 1/2 rounds
2 Celery Stalks, sliced
1 Yellow Onion, chopped
1 Green Pepper, chopped
1 Red Pepper, chopped
1 Jalapeño Pepper, seeded and minced
4 cloves Garlic, peeled and minced
3 oz Slab of Pre-Sliced Bacon*
2 tsp Creole Seasoning
1 Bouillon Cube
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Pepper
3 Green Onions, chopped including some of the green portion
Louisiana Hot Sauce, for individual seasoning
Rice
3 cu Uncooked Rice
6 cu Water
2 tbl Butter
1/4 tsp Salt
Method
Sort through beans and discard any foreign items or broken pieces. Place beans in a large bowl and cover with about 6 cups of water. Let sit overnight. In the morning, drain beans and place them in a crockpot.
In a large saucepan, sauté sausage over medium high heat until brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer to crockpot. Put 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil in same pan. Add onions, green pepper, red pepper, jalapeño and garlic and sauté just until onions are tender, about 3-4 minutes. transfer ingredients to crockpot. Top the onion mixture with the slab of bacon, cajun seasoning, bouillon cube, salt and pepper. Add 6 cups of fresh water. Cover crockpot, set to high and cook for 6 hours.
About 30 minutes before serving, prepare rice. Place rice, water, butter and salt in a large pot and bring to a boil. Stir ingredients and immediately reduce heat to a low simmer. Cover pot and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat, fluff rice with a fork and either scoop into individual bowls or onto a large serving platter.
After 6 hours in the crockpot, spoon mixture into individual bowls or into the center of large platter. Garnish with green onions and allow your guests to season their portions with hot sauce.
*You can get a pre-sliced slab of bacon from your local butcher. Ask for a 1" thick piece. Cut about 3" crosswise to use in this recipe and then thinly cut the rest lengthwise for traditional bacon slices.
If you have any comments or questions, please send me an email at wayne@waynesweekend.com or follow me on Facebook or Twitter.
