Red beans and rice
Encyclopedia
Red beans and rice is an emblematic dish of Louisiana Creole cuisine
(not originally of Cajun cuisine
) traditionally made on Mondays with red beans
, vegetables (bell pepper, onion and celery), spice
s (thyme
, cayenne pepper, and bay leaf) and pork
bones as left over from Sunday dinner, cooked together slowly in a pot and served over rice
. Meats such as ham, sausage (most commonly Andouille
), and Tasso ham
are also frequently used in the dish. It is an old custom from the time when ham was a Sunday meal and Monday was washday. A pot of beans could sit on the stove and simmer while the women were busy scrubbing clothes. Similar dishes are common in Latin American cuisine
, including moros y cristianos
and gallo pinto
.
Red beans and rice is one of the few New Orleans style dishes to be commonly cooked both in people's homes and in restaurants. Many neighborhood restaurants continue to offer it as a Monday lunch special, usually with a side order of either smoked sausage or a pork chop. While Monday washdays are largely a thing of the past, red beans remain a staple for large gatherings such as Super Bowl and Mardi Gras parties. Indeed, red beans and rice is very much part of the New Orleanian identity. Celebrated jazz trumpeter and New Orleanian Louis Armstrong
's favorite food was red beans and rice. The musician famously signed his name "Red Beans and Ricely Yours, Louis Armstrong”.
This dish is very similar to the vegetarian dish Rajma
chawal, which also literally means Red beans and rice, popular in North India
. Red beans and rice is also an important staple in Central America, where it is known as "arroz con habichuelas". They are important in Cuban, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Haitian and Jamaican cuisine.
(or Saint Domingue as it was called before) began, many of the rich white sugar planters fled to Louisiana
, the other main possession of France
in the New World at the time. They brought with them red beans from the Caribbean
. Red beans and rice was created in the kitchens of New Orleans' French Quarter
. The dish quickly gained in popularity and became a fixture of the cuisine
of New Orleans.
briefly. Some people choose to include bell pepper, thus completing the trinity
. The vegetables should be diced finely so that they will melt away once the dish is done. The beans and water are added as is a ham bone. Diced ham may also be included. Seasoning includes salt, thyme, bay leaf and cayenne pepper. While Cajun
(and to a lesser extent Creole
) cooking is often thought of as being very spicy, red beans are prepared on the mild side and are usually served with a bottle of hot sauce
nearby.
The beans take about two hours to cook. The best versions of the dish offer an interesting contrast in texture. The overall effect should be creamy, but the beans themselves should be firm (not mushy and certainly not crunchy). To increase the creaminess of the beans, some cooks choose to mash up to a quarter of the beans in the last half hour or so of cooking (smash the beans against the side of the pot using the back of a large spoon). To get an even creamier texture, some chefs will gradually incorporate butter into the beans during the last ten minutes.
Some people will cook smoked sausage with the beans, but traditionally, the sausage or pork chops were cooked on the side.
should always be available.
Louisiana Creole cuisine
Louisiana Creole cuisine is a style of cooking originating in Louisiana which blends French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Greek, Asian Indian, Native American, and African influences, as well as general Southern cuisine...
(not originally of Cajun cuisine
Cajun cuisine
Cajun cuisine is the style of cooking named for the French-speaking Acadian or "Cajun" immigrants deported by the British from Acadia in Canada to the Acadiana region of Louisiana, USA. It is what could be called a rustic cuisine — locally available ingredients predominate, and preparation...
) traditionally made on Mondays with red beans
Common bean
Phaseolus vulgaris, the common bean, is an herbaceous annual plant domesticated independently in ancient Mesoamerica and the Andes, and now grown worldwide for its edible bean, popular both dry and as a green bean. The leaf is occasionally used as a leaf vegetable, and the straw is used for fodder...
, vegetables (bell pepper, onion and celery), spice
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...
s (thyme
Thyme
Thyme is a culinary and medicinal herb of the genus Thymus.-History:Ancient Egyptians used thyme for embalming. The ancient Greeks used it in their baths and burnt it as incense in their temples, believing it was a source of courage...
, cayenne pepper, and bay leaf) and pork
Pork
Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....
bones as left over from Sunday dinner, cooked together slowly in a pot and served over rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
. Meats such as ham, sausage (most commonly Andouille
Andouille
Andouille is defined as a coarse-grained smoked sausage made using pork, pepper, onions, wine, and seasonings. Andouille is French in origin, and was later brought to the United States through Louisiana by French immigrants. In the United States, the sausage is most often associated with Cajun...
), and Tasso ham
Tasso ham
Tasso ham is a specialty of Cajun cuisine. It is a spicy, peppery version of smoked pork made from the shoulder butt. In this case, "ham" is a misnomer, since tasso is not made from the hind leg of a pig. This cut is typically fatty and, because the muscle is constantly used by the animal, has a...
are also frequently used in the dish. It is an old custom from the time when ham was a Sunday meal and Monday was washday. A pot of beans could sit on the stove and simmer while the women were busy scrubbing clothes. Similar dishes are common in Latin American cuisine
Latin American cuisine
Latin American Cuisine refers to typical foods, beverages, and cooking styles common to many of the countries and cultures in Latin America...
, including moros y cristianos
Platillo Moros y Cristianos
Platillo Moros y Cristianos is a famous Cuban dish. It can be considered to be the Cuban version of rice and beans, a dish found throughout the Caribbean and in Brazil.-Name:...
and gallo pinto
Gallo pinto
Gallo pinto is a traditional dish of Costa Rica that was introduced by nicaraguan immigrants. During the 1980's many nicaraguans immigrated to Costa Rica influencing their food and music. Though many variations exist, the dish at its most basic is composed of pre-cooked rice and beans fried together...
.
Red beans and rice is one of the few New Orleans style dishes to be commonly cooked both in people's homes and in restaurants. Many neighborhood restaurants continue to offer it as a Monday lunch special, usually with a side order of either smoked sausage or a pork chop. While Monday washdays are largely a thing of the past, red beans remain a staple for large gatherings such as Super Bowl and Mardi Gras parties. Indeed, red beans and rice is very much part of the New Orleanian identity. Celebrated jazz trumpeter and New Orleanian Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
's favorite food was red beans and rice. The musician famously signed his name "Red Beans and Ricely Yours, Louis Armstrong”.
This dish is very similar to the vegetarian dish Rajma
Rajma
Rājmā or Rāzmā is a popular North Indian vegetarian dish consisting of red kidney beans in a thick gravy with lots of Indian whole spices and usually served with rice and roti. Although, kidney bean is not of Indian origin, it is a part of regular diet in northern regions Punjab, Kashmir, Delhi,...
chawal, which also literally means Red beans and rice, popular in North India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Red beans and rice is also an important staple in Central America, where it is known as "arroz con habichuelas". They are important in Cuban, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Haitian and Jamaican cuisine.
History
When the slave rebellion in HaitiHaiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
(or Saint Domingue as it was called before) began, many of the rich white sugar planters fled to Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, the other main possession of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the New World at the time. They brought with them red beans from the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. Red beans and rice was created in the kitchens of New Orleans' French Quarter
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
. The dish quickly gained in popularity and became a fixture of the cuisine
Cuisine
Cuisine is a characteristic style of cooking practices and traditions, often associated with a specific culture. Cuisines are often named after the geographic areas or regions that they originate from...
of New Orleans.
Preparation
Red kidney beans or small red beans are used and they are usually (but not always) soaked beforehand. Onion, celery, and usually a bit of garlic are sautéedSautéing
Sautéing is a method of cooking food, that uses a small amount of fat in a shallow pan over relatively high heat. Ingredients are usually cut into pieces or thinly sliced to facilitate fast cooking. The primary mode of heat transfer during sautéing is conduction between the pan and the food being...
briefly. Some people choose to include bell pepper, thus completing the trinity
Holy trinity (cuisine)
The holy trinity is the Cajun and Louisiana Creole variant of mirepoix: onions, bell peppers, and celery in roughly equal quantities. This mirepoix is the base for much of the cooking in the regional cuisines of Louisiana...
. The vegetables should be diced finely so that they will melt away once the dish is done. The beans and water are added as is a ham bone. Diced ham may also be included. Seasoning includes salt, thyme, bay leaf and cayenne pepper. While Cajun
Cajun
Cajuns are an ethnic group mainly living in the U.S. state of Louisiana, consisting of the descendants of Acadian exiles...
(and to a lesser extent Creole
Louisiana Creole cuisine
Louisiana Creole cuisine is a style of cooking originating in Louisiana which blends French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Greek, Asian Indian, Native American, and African influences, as well as general Southern cuisine...
) cooking is often thought of as being very spicy, red beans are prepared on the mild side and are usually served with a bottle of hot sauce
Hot sauce
Hot sauce, chili sauce or pepper sauce refers to any spicy sauce made from chili peppers and other ingredients.-Ingredients:There are many recipes for hot sauces - the common ingredient being any kind of peppers. A group of chemicals called capsaicinoids are responsible for the heat in chili peppers...
nearby.
The beans take about two hours to cook. The best versions of the dish offer an interesting contrast in texture. The overall effect should be creamy, but the beans themselves should be firm (not mushy and certainly not crunchy). To increase the creaminess of the beans, some cooks choose to mash up to a quarter of the beans in the last half hour or so of cooking (smash the beans against the side of the pot using the back of a large spoon). To get an even creamier texture, some chefs will gradually incorporate butter into the beans during the last ten minutes.
Some people will cook smoked sausage with the beans, but traditionally, the sausage or pork chops were cooked on the side.
Presentation
White rice is cooked separately. Sausage may be cooked and served separately or may be sliced and incorporated into the beans during cooking. When being served buffet style for a party, the rice and beans should be kept apart and assembled as needed by the guests. When served on a plate, the rice is usually mounded in the center, perhaps with a bit of parsley. The beans are spooned all around the rice, and if sausage has been prepared separately a piece is placed on one side. Chopped green onion is an optional garnish, and a bottle of hot sauceHot sauce
Hot sauce, chili sauce or pepper sauce refers to any spicy sauce made from chili peppers and other ingredients.-Ingredients:There are many recipes for hot sauces - the common ingredient being any kind of peppers. A group of chemicals called capsaicinoids are responsible for the heat in chili peppers...
should always be available.
External links
- Beans and Rice - Southern U.S. Cuisine
- New Orleans Red Beans and Rice - The Gumbo Pages
- How To Make Red Beans and Rice Video - Cookbook Man