Hey you guys!
Here is my recipe for Dirty Rice and Beans (non-spicy).
This is super quick to cook, under 10 minutes once all the chopping is done AND you can tailor the amounts of everything to suit your own families tastes.
Now about the amounts: I have to cook enough to feed 6 people, all grownups except one. So it is going to make quite a bit. Don’t fret! Cut the recipe in half if you want OR better yet, go on and cook it up as I do and freeze the leftovers for another day. It freezes up just fine!
We also have some very picky taste buds in our house so this is very light with the seasoning. Don’t be ashamed to give ‘er a taste test after its been simmering a few minutes. Turn it up if you need to!
The Ingredients
- 2 pouches of boil in the bag rice ( I use family size minute rice)
- 2 beef sausages
- 2 cans dark red kidney beans
- 1 small can diced tomatoes, drained
- 3 stalks celery (chopped)
- 1/2 large onion (chopped)
- 1 bell pepper (chopped)
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp garlic salt
- 1 tbsp chives
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp salt
- pepper (couple of shakes)
- red pepper flakes (a shake or two)
Prep
Get out two large pots. You need one for boiling rice and a big one for mixing the goodies in. Go on and fill one with water and get it on HIGH to boil, and while that is heating up drag out all your ingredients.
Slide the rice pouches in to boil, and set the timer as directed on your box. You can even use left over rice, or make the rice earlier in the day so its good to go.
Chop your veggies and the sausages and drop them into the pot. Add all the other ingredients. Mix well, cover with lid and bring to a boil.
Once it starts to boil, turn it down to simmer, give it a stir and stick the lid back on it. It will make juice as it heats up, and that is fine. That will soak up into your rice in a minute anyway!
When the rice is ready, drain it and open the pouches. Put the rice into your simmer pot, mix it all up and stick your lid back on there. Bring it back to a boil, then set it back to simmer.
Let it simmer with the lid on for about 5 - 10 minutes, to let the juices get sucked into the rice. That way every bite will have flavor.
That’s it! Wasn’t that easy?
Serving variations:
I like mine served on a heaping bed of baby spinach! Jesse likes his with cheddar cheese. Harm just eats the rice and sausage out of hers, so someone gets extra veggies added to their plate in our house. LOL
For the leftovers:
This is great for lunch the next day! Kind of like a meatloaf does – the flavor gets better the longer it sets.
This freezes well. I don’t have any leftovers now that I have tweaked the recipe enough to suit our family, but the first few times I made it we did. I did freeze it a couple of times and it reheated well. I was worried the rice would get mooshy, but it was fine.
The leftovers are great recooked into stuffed bell peppers! Just add some tomato sauce and cheddar to the mix, throw it in some peppers and bake them suckers right up. *nomnomnom*
