New Orleans red beans and rice

My friend Ellen call this her dad's "ancestral" recipe. Ellen's father, who passed away suddenly a few years ago, grew up in the tight-knit Jewish community in New Orleans. Ellen remembers making this with him a few times when she was little. 

Long, slow cooking transforms these simple ingredients into a comforting bowl of winter goodness. Don't skimp on the Tabasco unless you absolutely have to - it makes the dish.

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New Orleans red beans and rice

by Erika Kerekes December-4-2013

Long, slow cooking transforms a few simple ingredients into a steaming bowl of comfort food. Serve these southern-style red beans over plain white rice if you want to be perfectly authentic.

Ingredients

• 1 pound dried red kidney beans
• 3 quarts water
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 rib celery, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 pound ham hock, beef stew meat, or beef brisket
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes or ground New Mexico chiles
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• 3 Tablespoons distilled white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt (start with 1/2 teaspoon and add gradually until the beans are seasoned to your taste)
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) butter

Instructions

To a large pot add the beans, water, onion, celery, garlic, bay leaves, meat, ground black pepper, red pepper flakes, Tabasco, and vinegar. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer uncovered 3 to 4 hours, until the beans are soft.Add salt and butter. (Do not add the salt earlier as it will toughen the beans.)Serve hot over plain white rice. Note: The beans should have a soupy consistency; if they start to seem dry, add more water.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 4 hour Total time: 4 hour 10 mins Yield: 8-10 servings