Fresh from the Kitchen: Recipes & Food Inspiration
- Prefer dry beans for flavor and thick gravy; canned beans heat fast but won't absorb flavor.
- Soak beans when possible; a quick soak (1 to 3 hours) helps, or rinse and add raw but expect extra cooking time.
- Add smoked meats like ham hocks or turkey legs for deep flavor; low and slow makes meat tender.
- For vegetarian or vegan versions, use vegetable broth, omit meat, add oil to sauté aromatics and a dash of liquid smoke.
Chicken Broth or Stock – You can use either broth or stock interchangeably here, or you can use an equal amount of water with three chicken bouillon cubes dissolved in it. In a pinch, plain water will also work; it just won’t produce as much flavor in the final dish.
Dry Beans vs. Canned Beans – Canned kidney beans pretty much just have to be warmed through, so they’ll cook extremely fast, but they won’t absorb any flavor. And you won’t develop much flavor or the thick gravy associated with making red beans.
No Soak – Soaking dried beans partially rehydrates them so that they will cook faster, so I always recommend it. But if you forget or are short on time, don’t worry! You can do a quick soak (1-3 hours) or just rinse, sort, and add the beans to the pot without soaking. The beans will typically take an extra hour or two to cook.
Other Meats – Smoked cuts like ham hocks or turkey legs are traditional inclusions because they infuse more flavor and add extra protein. The low and slow cooking style of red beans also gets the meat perfectly tender!
Vegetarian or Vegan – Use vegetable broth and omit the bacon and sausage. With no meat, you’ll need to use a couple tablespoons of cooking oil to saute the aromatics. I also recommend adding a bit of liquid smoke to round out the flavor.
View the full recipe or story from the original source
