Louisiana Style Red Beans and Rice

It’s Mardi Gras time and a Monday and the temperature is just above freezing today. These conditions call for the classic smokey comfort food of Louisiana style red beans and rice.

Back in the day, this dish was a way to use the ham bone from Sunday’s dinner to flavor the pot simmering on the stove all day while the laundry was done on Monday. And while it is a great meal to make on the stove, using the Instant Pot will cut the cooking time to just over 90 minutes making it a cozy homecooked meal you can enjoy anytime.

Soaking dry beans

Epicurious wrote a great article about the various myths surrounding cooking with dried beans. There is a lot of tradition surrounding many down-home recipes that add to the folklore of the right way of cooking beans. One of the first hurdles in cooking beans is the question of whether to soak beans overnight before cooking them. While soaking (and then discarding that water) is a way to minimize the effects on the digestive system, the benefits of a long soak don’t outweigh the hassle. If it is the way you have always cooked beans, go ahead, but you can get the same results by adding a few extra minutes to the cooking time.

Do remember that while beans have a long shelf life, they do get old and when that happens no amount of cooking or soaking will make them tender. For the best results, look for beans that are whole and firm and not damaged or contain grit. 

Andouille Sausage for Louisiana Style Red Beans and Rice

Andouille (pronounced ahn-DOO-ee), is a spicy sausage made from smoked pork chunks that are ground coarser than some other sausages. The seasoning is Creole-based and gives the meat a distinctive pink tint. It comes ready to slice and use in a variety of Southern recipes. Readily available in most grocery stores it is found in the meat department in the packaged meat area.

The Holy Trinity of aromatics

The base of Creole and Cajan cooking is an equal mixture of chopped onion, celery, and green bell pepper. This aromatic trio is called the Holy Trinity and is sautéed at the start of a dish so the flavors can blend together as the basis for what comes next. It is the foundation of classic Louisiana dishes. Chop the vegetables into a medium dice for this dish since you want to see the vegetables along with the red beans.

Red beans versus kidney beans

Red beans are oblong in shape and smaller in size than kidney beans. They are also a lighter pink-red color as opposed to the darker red color and kidney-shaped Kidney beans. Red beans are sometimes labeled Mexican red beans. And while you can use kidney beans instead of red beans, there is a slight difference in texture when cooked and the smaller size is desirable in this dish since it blends well with the rice.

Louisiana Style Red Beans and Rice

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• Author: Chef Lisa
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 60 minutes
• Total Time: 90 minutes
• Yield: 8 1x
• Category: main dish
• Method: Pressure Cooker
• Cuisine: Southern

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Description

Creamy and smokey, this classic Louisiana style red beans and rice will warm you up from the inside out. Flavorful red beans cooked in the Instant Pot with an Andouille sausage and a ham hock and seasoned with the trinity and Cajun seasoning are served with freshly cooked rice.

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Ingredients

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• 1 pound dried red beans
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 package (about 12 ounces) Andouille sausage, sliced into 1/4-inch thick slices
• 1 white onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 green bell pepper, diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 celery rib, diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 1–1/2 tablespoons cajan seasoning
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 ham hock
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
• Cooked white long-grain rice, for serving
• Hot sauce to taste

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Instructions

1. Rinse beans and remove any bits of dirt or broken or withered beans. Set aside. 
2. With the Instant Pot heated to saute setting, sauce the Andouille sausage in 1 tablespoon of oil until browned on both sides. Remove and set aside.
3. Add remaining 1 tablespoon of oil to the pot, and add the onions, celery and bell pepper and saute for 3-5 minutes or until onions become transparent. 
4. Add the red beans, Cajan seasoning, black pepper, salt, bay leaves and minced garlic. Nestle the ham hock into the beans and return the browned Andouille sausage to the pot.
5. Add the chicken broth and water.
6. Set the Instant Pot to Manual and HIGH Pressure for 60 minutes. Natural release for 15 minutes.
7. Remove the bay leaves and discard. Pull the meat from the ham hock and return it to the pot. 
8. Remove 1 cup of the mixture into a separate bowl and mash with a potato masher to break up the beans to a smoke consistency (or use a food processor). Then stir the smooth beans back into the pot to thicken the sauce.
9. Change the setting on the Instant Pot to saute and  cook for 5-10 minutes or until desired thickness.
10. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Stir in fresh parsley and serve with cooked white rice.
11. Garnish with hot sauce, if desired.

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Notes

If the beans are not tender after 60 minutes, replace the lid and bring bakc to high presuure and continue to cook for 10 minutes more. Release pressure naturally for 15 minutes and check the beans again.

You can add a cup more water or broth if beans seem too thick.

This dish can be made ahead and reheated. It will be good in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

It can also be frozen by allowing the beans to cool completely and then transfer to a container approximate for the freezer for up to 3 months. To use: thaw in the refrigerator overnight then reheat  on the stove or in the microwave. Serve with hot cooked rice.

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