More 6 Photos

Chef John's Red Beans and Rice Recipe

Recipe by: Chef John

"Any time someone asks the question, 'What exactly is soul food?' the answer should always be 'a comforting bowl of red beans and rice.' Just sit them down, give them a spoon, and when they finish, ask them if they understand. They will."

Directions
Ingredients
Nutrition

Directions

Prep30 m
Cook3 h 15 m
Ready In3 h 45 m

1Place beans in a large container and cover with several inches of cool water; let stand 8 hours to overnight. Drain and rinse.
2Heat vegetable oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir sausage in hot oil until oils slightly release from sausage and edges brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir onion, celery, and poblano pepper into sausage; cook and stir until vegetables soften and start to turn translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir garlic into sausage mixture; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3Stir chicken broth, ham hock, bay leaves, black pepper, thyme, cayenne pepper, and hot sauce into sausage mixture; bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 hours. Add salt and continue simmering until beans are soft, meat is tender, and desired consistency is reached, 1 1/2 to 2 hours more. Season with salt.
4Spoon rice into bowls, ladle red beans mixture over rice, and top with green onion.

Footnotes

Cook's Note:
You can substitute green bell peppers for the poblano pepper, if desired. You can use water in place of chicken broth, if desired.
Tip
Aluminum foil helps keep food moist, ensures it cooks evenly, keeps leftovers fresh, and makes clean-up easy.

Ingredients