Red Beans & Rice.... Monday’s Menu in South Louisiana

So have your heard the "Red Beans and Rice on Mondays" story???  It’s goes something like this....

Many decades ago when women  (yes I’m only using woman in this story because this far back in history, men  were not washing  clothes with a washboard.  That was not their role in the household.) washed the dirty clothes using a washboard and a bucket. The dirty laundry would take all day to wash. Mondays just so happen to be the day that was designated for wash day.  By doing the washing of the clothes on a Monday, it left the rest of the week for drying them, folding and pressing them for the following Sunday. 

I, for one, can not imagine washing  each piece of clothing by hand. It takes me a week to do a load of laundry, and I’m filling my XL tub in my washer with what is not even a weeks worth of clothes. It would take me a century to get one load done by hand.  Because washing by hand was an all day chore, the women needed something that was low maintenance on the stove that day for dinner,  and red beans is what was on the menu for  Wash Day Mondays.  

Why beans you ask??? Beans cook long and slow on a low heat.  The bean is hard and must soften. It's a process that takes patience and very little attention when you have enough water added to your pot.  

Of course a Louisianian is all about a tradition; so even long after the electric washer machine was invented, everyone still dedicated their "Monday Menus" to the red bean. I am certain it's the most popular dinner cooked in homes as well as the daily special in almost every restaurant on Monday in South Louisiana.

I think I take for granted my access to a lot of foods that South Louisiana (particularly NOLA) is well known for.  I shared a recipe with a friend one time who lived in Colorado.  She searched high and low for the main ingredient only for us to discover that it was only sold in the south.  Since New Orleans is so close to the Coast of Mississippi, most of the time the groceries along the coast carry those items.   The Camellia Red Bead is one of those items.  The red bean is also known as the kidney bean.  I am sure anyone anywhere could purchase a bag of kidney beans, but they would not be able to purchase the Camellia Red Bean which is the famous and preferred brand of NOLA.  

It's possible that some other brand would taste the same??????  I would not know because our food here is like a religion.  It would be against my food religion to purchase a bean other than the Camellia brand.....that goes for the other beans too such as the Great Northerner Bean.  In the reality of it....a bean is a bean right?   What makes this one different?  I am going to guess and say that the other bean brands do not have the "Camellia-Famous New Orleans Red Bean" recipe on the back of the packaging.  Again, I would not know because I only buy Camellia beans.  

As you can probably imagine, I don't exactly follow that recipe. (shh...don't tell) 

I don't follow the recipe on the bag for a few reasons:  1.  I am not a fan of the "Bay Leaf",  and 2.  I take a short cut and buy the pre-chopped seasoning.  I also add more meat to my beans.  My family enjoys the smokey flavor that a smoked pork ham hock gives the beans.  I also love pickled port and the way it shreds in the beans as it cooks.  And what's beans without smoked sausage?  The best sausage is from Alabama....Conecuh.  YUM!!!! Yes, can you believe this LA girl and her fam love sausage from another state but good food is hard to deny no matter what rival (LSU v's BAMA) state produces it.  OK....I can admit they produce good SEC football and sausage.

As if cooking beans long and slow on low isn't easy enough, I try to make it even easier.  So for those of you who may love the taste of New Orleans' Red Beans and Rice but can't get the Camellia beans, try cooking your red kidney beans this way.

Red Beans                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Print Recipe

1  lb           red kidney beans (Camellia if you have access)
2  cups       creole seasoning (onion, celery, bell pepper)
2-3             smoked ham hocks (these are bought smoked)
1  lb           pickled pork (I have also used pork salt meat)
1  lb           smoked sausage
                  salt and pepper to taste
                  dash of cayenne pepper

1. Fill a 6.5 quart pot about halfway with water
2. Add beans, ham hocks, pickled port, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper
3. Bring to a boil on high
4. Reduce heat to low and cover
5. Stir once every 15-20 min for 2-3 hours
6. I like to turn my fire off and let the beans sit on the stove for about an hour.  The starch from the bean must release and help thicken the bean stock. You can turn the fire back on when you're ready to add the sausage (cut in 1/4 " slices)  about 30 min prior to eating.   If you don't do this and the stock is still thinner than you'd like, turn your heat up on the stove to evaporate some of the water from the beans.  This will thicken them.  You can add the sausage now as well.  
7. Remove ham hock from the beans.  Some ham hocks have a nice little chunk of ham on them, but some are just a thick piece of smoked fat attached to a bone only good for seasoning the beans.  If you're lucky and have ham, cut it off and add it to the beans. 
8. If your pickled pork hasn't fallen apart, you may need to shred it with forks.  
9. Serve over hot sticky rice with a biscuit or corn bread. 

As you know from some of my previous food pictures that I am not a food photographer, but I do know how to cook....trust the method. 

 Do you wear an apron?  I have nice little collection.  

 This pot of beans has three huge ham hocks in it with the pickled pork so it made the water rise almost to the rim. 

 I was in the process of thickening the  beans here....bringing my temp up some to cook out some of the water. 

 Served with hot sticky Jasmine rice.  

I love rice so I like more rice than beans. 

Some people like it hot so they add Tabasco or Crystal's Hot Sauce.