We were both in a Cajun mood tonight, and what better way to capitalize on such a feeling than with red beans and rice? This dish has the dual distinction of being both an incredibly easy after-work meal and one of our favorite go-tos, besides!
Just how easy, you ask? Well, let’s put it this way: While the rice cooked, I took a few minutes to re-mortar a strip in the basement laundry room that has gotten a little, shall we say, defunkitated over the years and has recently begun to leak a tad. And by the time I got done, I still had time to simmer the bean-and-tomato mixture as well as grill up the chorizo in 10 minutes flat! I do love to multitask.
(Incidentally, regarding the mortar, I chose today to embark on this project because no rain was anticipated until tomorrow. It’s been pouring for an hour now with no intention of stopping. But so it goes.)
So at any rate, as the rice cooked and the mortar dried, I heated up a can of red kidney beans and mixed them with a can of diced tomatoes with green chilies to give the pan a little kick. Then I added a generous amount of Cajun seasoning (we’re partial to Tony Chachere around here!) and let the beans simmer for about 15 minutes. As they cooked, I brought out my trusty stovetop grill pan and barbecued four Field Roast chipotle chorizo links to – dare I say! – near-perfection, with grill marks and all. Once the rice cooker clicked off, it was time to eat!
I must say, there’s not a smidgen of rice or beans left (though there are still two chipotle links, which I feel confident LeeLee will make light work of tomorrow). I don’t know what it is about red beans and rice that’s just so dang comforting; it makes us feel like we’ve come home. The buttery smooth beans, the tang of the spicy tomatoes, the rice that offsets the heat – it’s a wonderfully delicate dance that we love every single time. I can’t think of a better way to spend a surprisingly rainy Wednesday evening!
:)