awhile back, we discovered this recipe. delicious! it quickly became added to the regular rotation and (especially in winter) makes an appearance at least once a month. it’s a quick weeknight meal and the happy toddler loves the sausage and beans (and can sometimes be distracted from the veggies enough to just eat them, although the celery often gets ejected). i’ve actually altered the recipe enough from the original that when mr. happy stuff tried to make it last week, he couldn’t find the recipe in our recipe book (but that one doesn’t have beans! or cajun seasoning!). so i thought i’d share it with you in case it’s as good a fit for your family as it has been for ours.
you’ll need:Â onion, celery, red pepper, garlic, smoked polish sausage and some canned tomatoes.
things we’ve added to the original recipe include a can of these red beans (you could also use pintos or maybe even black eyed peas, but these are the ones we use)
and about a teaspoon of cajun / creole seasoning (use more if you like it spicy, or just add it to your own plate at the table if you’re eating with a spice-sensitive child)
i also like it serve it on this madagascar pink rice. it’s our new favorite rice. cooks up like white rice (i.e. it doesn’t take an hour like brown rice), but has more nutrients and flavor than white rice.
once you’ve started your rice in the rice cooker, chop up the sausage into bite-sized pieces and saute until crispy.
remove the browned meat to a paper towel (or not, this step is somewhat optional) and then put your veggies in. don’t worry about the brown sticky bits on the bottom of your pan. that’s the flavor! we’ll deglaze that when we add the can of tomatoes here in a second.
once the veggies are tender, throw the garlic in for a few seconds before dumping in the tomatoes. use the juices to loosen the brown yummy bits on the bottom of the pan and stir it all together. add the beans (drained and rinsed) and cajun seasoning at this point, then toss the sausage back in and let it all get nice and hot, then it’s ready to serve!
sometimes we add the rice to the pot too, sometimes we serve the beans/meat/tomato mixture on top of the rice, it’s really up to you.
here’s the recipe:
Red Beans, Sausage and Rice
12 ounces smoked sausage (such as kielbasa), cut into small pieces
1 medium yellow onion, diced medium
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 red bell pepper, diced medium
1 celery stalk, diced medium
salt & pepper to taste (i use jane’s krazy mixed up salt)
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
1 can red beans, drained and rinsed
1 t. cajun or creole seasoning2 cups rice
Directions
- In a large skillet or stockpot, heat sausage over medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, until crispy, about 8 minutes.
- Add onion, garlic, red pepper, and celery; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until celery is tender, 8 minutes.
- Add tomatoes and cajun seasoning and cook until slightly thickened, 3 minutes.
- Add beans and rice and cook until warmed through, about 2 minutes.
