Red Beans and Rice with Sausage

In a large saucepan add water, cook rice according to package instructions; set aside.
1 cup jasmine rice, 1 1/4 cups cold tap water

Heat butter or oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Working in batches, add sausage, and cook, stirring frequently, until sausage is browned, about 5-10 minutes (or desired doneness); set aside. Remove to a plate. Do not drain juices. You want all those juices for flavor.
1 tablespoon butter or avocado oil, 12-16 ounces andouille sausage
Add onion, bell pepper and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.
⅓ cup diced yellow onion, ⅓ cup diced green bell pepper, ¼ cup diced celery
Stir in garlic, tomato paste, and Cajun seasoning until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 ½ to 2 teaspoons creole seasoning
Add chicken stock, red beans, hot sauce, bay leaf and sausage (with juices); pepper, season with salt to taste. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the lid, continue to simmer until reduced, an additional 15-20 minutes. (You can also cook longer and the flavors will develop even more, if you like.)
2 ½ cups chicken broth, 3 cans red beans, 1 teaspoon louisiana style hot sauce, 1 bay leaf, ½ teaspoon black pepper
Using a wooden spoon, mash some of the beans against the inside side of the pan (or potato masher), until slightly thickened, if the beans are not as thick as you would like. Taste and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
salt to taste

SOAK: The night before you want to cook, sort through beans and remove any stones. Add dry beans to a large bowl and cover with cold water by a few inches. Soak beans overnight. Before cooking, drain and rinse beans.
Proceed with the recipe as directed for canned beans up until cooking times.
NOTE: You will use 6-7 cups of chicken broth. Start with 6 cups and add more as the beans cook down.
*If serving as a meal, I like to double the sausage for this recipe, but it's optional.
Place a lid on the pot, set the burner to medium-high heat, and bring it up to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium-low, and let the pot simmer for 1 to 1½ hours (or until the beans are as tender as you like), stirring occasionally. 1 hour is usually enough, but it will depend on the age and how much soaking time on the beans. Put the lid back on each time after you stir.
After cooking the beans for about one hour, the beans should be tender. Begin to smash the beans with the back of a spoon against the side of the pot. Then, let the pot simmer without a lid for 30 minutes to thicken the pot.
Once cooking is complete, you can mash more beans with the back of a spoon, or a potato masher, if you would like them thicker. Keep in mind the sauce will thicken as it sits. Taste and adjust salt and seasonings as needed.

When using this amount of beans, I double the sausage (24-32 ounces, 2 packages- but it's optional). I highly recommend browning the sausage for the best flavor, but if you prefer, you can add them directly to the slow cooker.
Heat butter or oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Working in batches, add sausage, and cook, stirring frequently, until sausage is browned, about 5-10 minutes (or desired doneness); set aside. Remove to a plate. Do not drain juices. You want all those juices for flavor.
You can double the onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic, if desired. Sautéing the veggies is optional.
To the slow cooker, add chicken stock (5 cups of chicken broth), red beans, onion, bell pepper, celery, garlic, tomato paste, and Cajun seasoning, hot sauce, bay leaf, sausages (with juices), pepper, and season with salt to taste.
Stir, cover with the lid and cook on High for 6 to 7 hours.
During the last 2 hours stir occasionally. This will help the break up the beans and thicken the sauce.
Once cooking is complete, you can mash more beans with the back of a spoon or a potato masher, if you would like them thicker. Keep in mind the sauce will thicken as it sits.

Serve with white rice and garnish with parsley and/or green onion and a dash of your favorite hot sauce.

Storage