New Orleans Red Beans and Rice (Printable View)
Creole comfort at its finest: creamy red beans, smoky turkey sausage, and aromatic vegetables simmered to perfection over fluffy rice.
# What You Need:
→ Beans and Sausage
01 - 1 pound dried red kidney beans, rinsed and sorted
02 - 12 ounces smoked turkey sausage, sliced
03 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
→ Aromatics and Vegetables
04 - 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
05 - 1 green bell pepper, diced
06 - 2 celery stalks, diced
07 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
→ Liquids and Seasonings
08 - 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water
09 - 2 bay leaves
10 - 1 teaspoon dried thyme
11 - 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
12 - 1 teaspoon dried oregano
13 - 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
14 - 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
15 - 1 teaspoon salt
→ To Serve
16 - 3 cups cooked long grain white rice
17 - 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
18 - 2 green onions, sliced
19 - Hot sauce, optional
# How-To Steps:
01 - Soak beans overnight in a large bowl of cold water. Drain and rinse before using. Alternatively, use quick-soak method: cover beans with water, bring to a boil, boil for 2 minutes, turn off heat and let sit for 1 hour, then drain and rinse.
02 - Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat. Add turkey sausage and cook until browned, approximately 5 minutes. Transfer sausage to a plate and set aside.
03 - In the same pot, add onion, bell pepper, and celery. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, until softened. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
04 - Add soaked beans, sausage, chicken broth, bay leaves, thyme, paprika, oregano, cayenne, black pepper, and salt. Stir well to combine.
05 - Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender and mixture is creamy. Add more broth or water as needed if mixture becomes too thick.
06 - Remove bay leaves. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
07 - Serve hot over white rice. Garnish with parsley, green onions, and a dash of hot sauce if desired.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The beans develop this velvety creaminess that somehow feels both luxurious and homey at the same time - like comfort food that went to culinary school.
- Swapping traditional pork sausage for turkey creates a lighter version that still maintains all the smoky depth of flavor but leaves you feeling satisfied instead of sluggish.
02 -
- Never add salt until the beans are tender - adding it too early can make them tough and extend cooking time by hours.
- The back of a wooden spoon pressed against the side of the pot to crush some of the beans creates the perfect creamy-yet-chunky texture that defines authentic red beans.
03 -
- The beans will continue to thicken as they cool, so if you're making this ahead of time, keep the consistency slightly looser than your final goal and thin with a splash of broth when reheating if needed.
- Freezing portions in flattened zip-top bags creates a stash of homemade convenience food that tastes infinitely better than anything store-bought and reheats in minutes.