Who doesn’t love red beans ‘n rice…raise your hands???  Here is a southern comfort food that truly deserves the name ‘comfort’.  As a child, my Mother would make several southern dishes, bowing to my Father’s southern upbringing…well Kentucky is south of Michigan!  Although my Mom is 100% Japanese raised in Hawaii, she cooked American…mixing southern style red beans ‘n rice with Japanese sushi  and Hawaiian teriyaki and an acre garden filled with fresh fruits and veggies of many nationalities…and the resulting palates of all of us kids were a regular melting pot of tastes!  Of course, as a child I had no idea that red beans ‘n rice was an actual southern dish, I just knew it as a dinner side dish.  Unfortunately, since my Dad had an ulcer, my Mom cooked without spices…so our red beans ‘n rice missed that down home spiciness that I’ve come to know and love and that a truly southern style red beans ‘n rice recipe is known for!

If you love spicy foods and need a quick but hearty hot one-dish meal to whip up for your family after a long day at work…here is a semi-homemade version fortified with Kielbasa sausage that hits the spot!  I use the package directions to prepare the red beans ‘n rice and add the can of Rotel tomatoes on top of the required cooking liquid, mainly because I love a creamy “with lots of gravy” type red beans ‘n rice dish. You can keep the ingredients handy in pantry and freezer for that ‘go to’ dinner when you can’t imagine doing a fancy meal.  That distinctive, spicy garlicy aroma with a hint of bay that fills the house will be your call to dinner…and the kids will fight over the “lil dicks”!!!

Red Beans ‘N Rice

Ingredients:

• 1 package of your favorite Red Beans and Rice mix (I like Zatarain’s New Orleans Style Red Beans and Rice)
• 1  14 oz package of mini Kielbasa sausage (my family refers to them as “lil dicks”)
• 1  10 oz can of Rotel tomatoes
• 1  15 oz can of Red Kidney Beans (drained)

Either fry the sausage in a skillet until deliciously browned all over, or line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and roast the sausage in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes, shaking midway to brown all over.  The greasy parchment can be discarded and prevents you from having to scrub the cookie sheet afterwards.

Meanwhile in a 4 qt pot or dutch oven, measure out the liquid called for on the package, add the whole can of Rotel tomatoes and the rice and spices.  You can let this all soak for 20 minutes to several hours, depending on time of day…but it’s not necessary.  I find the pre-soak makes for a creamier version of the dish.

Half an hour before I plan to serve dinner, I add the caramelized sausage to the pot and begin the cooking process according to the package…mainly bringing the pot to a boil uncovered, then turning it down to a simmer covered for 25 minutes.

The last 5 minutes I toss in the drained red kidney beans and stir to heat them through.

Serve hot with veggies or a salad.  Very comforting!