Red Beans & Rice w/ Smoked Sausage

1 pkg of your favorite Smoked Sausage links

1 Tbsp of Chopped Garlic

1 Diced Yellow Onion

1 Diced Red Bell Pepper/Kidney Beans

1 Diced Poblano Pepper

1/2 Cup of Diced Celery

1 Tbsp of Dried Oregano (optional)

2 Bay Leaves

2 small cans of Red Beans

1 Cup of Ketchup (the secret ingredient)

2 Tbsp of Paprika or Cajun Spice

3 Cups of Chicken Broth

2 Tbsp of Chopped Cilantro

1/4 Cup of Chopped Green Onion

Salt and Black Pepper to taste

1. Grab your favorite pot and begin sautéing the Smoked Sausage, both of the Peppers, the Celery, Diced Onions, Chopped Garlic, Oregano, and Bay Leaves over medium high heat. (For roughly 3-5 minutes)

2. Once the sausage and aromatics begin to sweat, add the Red Beans, Ketchup, Paprika and Chicken Broth, and bring the mix to a simmer.

3. Allow the mix to. Simmer for about 20- 30 minutes allowing it to reduce to the desired thickness and turn off the heat.

4. Finish the mix by adding the Green Onions and Cilantro, and season to taste with the slat and pepper.

Don’t be afraid to play with the variations of heat, and spice to get more depth and sweetness into your beans and rice. Remember, the idea is to make it so that it fits YOUR palate.

For the Rice

3 cups of White Rice, Rinsed

(If Available Parboiled Rice works best)

6 cups of water, (or for more flavor use, Chicken Broth if available)

1 tsp of salt

1 Tbsp of oil

1. Begin by bringing the rice and broth to a boil. (Do not boil the water before adding the rice as it will make the rice less tender and undercooked.)

2. Once the rice has come to a boil, reduce it to a heavy simmer and continue cooking the grains until they become tender. (If necessary you can add a little extra water or broth to the pot if the liquid simmers out before the grains become tender.)

3. Once the rice has finished cooking, add the salt and oil and fluff it with a fork so that some of the heat can escape and keep the rice from becoming too mushy.

Enjoy!