Beans and Rice
This recipe for beans and rice is great to make on the weekend and bring to work during the week. It's also great for entertaining on a budget, since you can feed 5 or 6 people for less than ten dollars. It is a vegan adaptation of cajun rice and beans, similar to gallo pinto.
1 package (16 oz) dry beans (kidney or black beans preferred)
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 celery stalk, sliced thin
1 bulb garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground basil
Olive oil
Salt to taste
Pepper, to taste
1â2 whole dried or fresh hot peppers (optional)
1â2 cups rice
Soak beans overnight, or, bring to a boil and let sit for one hour.
In a Dutch oven or large pot, sauté onions and garlic in olive oil on medium heat until onions are translucent.
Add green pepper and celery, and sauté for a few minutes more.
Add beans and enough water to cover all ingredients.
Add spices, then bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until done (1â2 hours, depending on the age of your beans).
1â2 hours
Add rice and twice as much water to a pot (i.e. 1 cup rice + 2 cups water).
Bring to a rolling boil, and cook until the water has boiled down to the level of the rice.
Reduce heat to a light simmer, cover, and cook for 20 minutes.
20 minutes
Serve the beans over the rice and enjoy! It is also very tasty with cornbread.
- âąYou can use canned beans instead of dry. This greatly reduces cooking time, but doesn't allow for the flavor to soak into the beans as well.
- âąTo make this in a crockpot, sautĂ© the vegetables in a pan, then add all ingredients (except rice) to the crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
- âąYou can make this in an Instant Pot or pressure cooker.