It's a long held tradition that continues to this day, even if nobody is doing any laundry, and you'll find it offered up at just about every meat and three restaurant here, and even in some that are more upscale. Like po'boys, it's a meal that is just part of our lives.
I have four different ways that I make them, depending on resources and time, so I thought that I'd gather them all up in one place for y'all. We've got you covered for those super busy days where you only have a few minutes to those days that you have the time to let them cook low and slow in the traditional way - my personal favorite. I promise you that they all deliver on flavor. Just click on the titles or photo to go to the recipe!

![]() |
Homemade red kidney beans made with dried beans, and slow stewed with the Trinity, bacon, smoked sausage and a good ham bone or ham hock if you have one, served over hot rice with fresh French bread. |


![]() |
A quicker version of Red Beans and Rice made with The Trinity, bacon, smoked sausage and canned kidney beans, preferably Blue Runner brand. You will hardly believe they're a shortcut version! |

![]() |
An even quicker in-a-hurry skillet version of red beans and rice, made with canned kidney beans, the Trinity of vegetables and cooked with instant rice. |

There you have it - four delicious ways to prepare red beans and rice!

I grew up on beans and rice, being from the south you know thats right. I loved them then and still do 78 years later. Enjoy your site. Bill
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Bill! I hope that, the good Lord willing, I'll still be eating them at 78 myself!
DeleteMy family loved the skillet red beans and rice. Thank you for including quick versions of your favorites! (We especially love the quick shrimp étouffée made with cream of mushroom) I just ordered your cookbook from Amazon. FYI to other readers: they have finally restocked it!! Yay!
ReplyDeleteThat skillet bean dish is wonderful and a nice way to get in a quick red beans & rice. I love the slow stewed homemade version but I sure do enjoy the skillet one on some days too and that quick etouffee is crazy isn't it?
DeleteThank you so much for ordering my cookbook Christa & I hope that you enjoy having it in your collection!
Alexis got her first pressure cooker this fall so she's just getting into experimenting with all sorts of bean dishes. Her pintos are getting pretty great so now we need to get to work on red beans.
ReplyDeleteI haven't used mine a whole lot but I have found that I liked the process of starting the beans with it, then finishing them with all of my seasonings to stew on the stovetop. I still find that stovetop and oven braising beats the pressure cooker, at least for my tastes. It's also great for starting ribs to finish on the grill! I've done a few other things but I need to experiment with it a bit more.
DeleteMary, how do I order your cookbook?
ReplyDeleteHi Gwen! It's pretty much available everywhere now. If you look in the upper left hand side of my website, I do have links to Amazon and other online sources. If you're on a smartphone you'll need to scroll all the down and click where it says "web view" to see the sidebar stuff. Hope that helps!
DeleteMy Mama was once married to a mean man. She had to learn how to feed all my sisters and brothers on next to nothing since our father drank it all away. She made red beans and rice with hamburger. I still love it that way but my sweet husband likes it with sausage like HIS mama made. I recently got your book, the cover art was enticing. Mama also made lots of what she called vegetable dinners. They often looked just like the cover! It is a wonderful book and one I will pass on to my daughter when the time comes!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Paula & I'm so glad that you're enjoying the book. I was asked for it for many years so I hoped that it would be everything everybody hoped for.
DeleteYes, folks used to use ground beef in their red beans because it was more economical, many still do I'm sure!