Red kidney beans and rice is an easy recipe for lunch, this delicious staple can be paired with vegetable salad or with chilled coleslaw; Red kidney beans and rice recipe is a great combination and a good source of complete protein for both vegans and non-vegans. It is a whole and flavourful dish for any one. Red kidney beans recipe can be combined with white rice, basmati rice, brown rice or with any kind of rice. See how to cook the red kidney beans recipe.
Rice and beans dish remains a staple in many people in different parts of the world including the Nigerian, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Haitian,Dominican and Jamaican among others; it can be prepared to serve a large gathering during some special occasions. Rice and beans are common and affordable ingredients often available in all seasons, there are so many ways of cooking this combo; some other ways to cook this easy beans and rice recipe is to prepare it with coconut milk just the way you would have made coconut rice. The beans can be cooked separately like beans porridge then serve over boiled white rice. Also, if you want to make the Nigerian version of beans and rice dish, you can use palm oil in place of vegetable oil to make what is called palm oil rice and bean recipe.
However, you can use canned red beans for this recipe instead of having topreparethe dried beans from scratch. To make a quick and simple red beans and rice dish, you will need to cook your beans first to become soft ( if you are going to be using the dried red beans). Secondly, quickly rinse your rice or parboil it for 5 minutes, depending on the type of rice you are using before the main cooking which wont take much time after that for a better result.
The rice and beans dish is very nutritious; the beans containgood amount ofiron, while the rice is rich in iron and vitamin. For this recipe I used the red kidney beans, but you can use any type of beans including black beans, lima or navy beans if you want; you can still make your rice and beans simple, yet satisfying by adding in some healthy vegetables like green bell peppers, parsley, cilantro and onions. If you are looking forward to increase the amount of vegetables in your rice and beans dish, you can simply add in tomatoes, carrots, and green beans to your dish if you prefer these. In addition, the red kidney beans can be soaked beforehand, to prevent blotting, but not in all cases, the red beans i used for this recipecame directly from the farm and were still very fresh, so i didn’t bother to soak themand it cooked very fast (about 30-40 minutes).
Table of Contents
Red kidney beans and rice ingredients
- 250gdried red kidney beans (1 canof red bean will do)
- 500g long grain rice
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 5-8 pieces tomatoes, chopped
- 1-teaspoon thyme
- Fried fish, sausage or grill chicken
- 2 bay leaves, optional
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 pieces green bell peppers, chopped
- 2 sticks celery, chopped
- 1 medium onion
- 2 seasoning cubes or chicken broth
- Salt and pepper to taste
Red kidney beans and rice ingredients
Steps for makingred kidney beans and rice recipe
- Wash and cook red beans for 10 minutes and then drain the first blackish liquid out.
- Cook the beans the second time until it is completely soft and keep aside
- Wash rice until the water turns clear or simply parboil the rice for 5 minutes and rinse.
- Heat up a saucepan, add 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil into it and let it get hot.
- Add chopped onions, garlic and pepper into the oil and saut for 30 seconds.
- Add in the chopped tomato and saut for 10 minutes, when the tomato is almost cooked add bell peppers and stir-fry for 5 minutes.
- Season the content with salt, pepper, thyme, 2 seasoning cubes and bring to a boil, add 2 cups of chicken broth or water with 2 bay leaves.
- Bring in the parboiled rice followed by the cooked beans into it and stir the content well to combine.
- Add more water if needed and cover with a lid to simmer on a medium heat until the rice and beans are properly cooked.
- Once the liquid is completely dried, discard the bay leaves and serve your red kidney beans and rice, garnished with chopped celery and with fried chicken or fish and enjoy it warm or cold.
Easy steps to prepare red beans and rice with pictures
1. Wash and cook red beans for 10 minutes and then drain the first darkish liquid out.
Cooking of red beans on a stove top
2. Cook the beans the second time until it is completely soft and then keep aside
3. Wash rice until the water turns clear or simply parboil the rice for 5 minutes and rinse out excess starch.
4. Heat up a saucepan, add 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil into it and let it get hot. Once the oil is hot, add chopped onions, garlic and pepper into the oil and saut for 30 seconds.
Taste the red beans from time to time know if they are tender
5. Add in the chopped tomato and saut for 10 minutes, when the tomato is almost cooked add bell peppers and stir-fry for 5 minutes.
Frying of onions and garlic for red beans and rice recipe
frying of chopped tomato for red beans and rice recipe
After the tomato is cooked for 10 minutes, you can then add the bell peppers into it to cook for 5 minutes, you don’t want to over cook the peppers
6. Season the content with salt, pepper, thyme, 2 seasoning cubes and bring to a boil, add 2 cups of chicken broth or water with 2 bay leaves if you are using bay leaves.
The red beans and rice are being stirred into the content.
7.Bring in the parboiled rice followed by the cooked beans into the content and stir properly to combine.
If the liquid dries while the rice is not yet cooked, you can add more water to it to enable it cook properly
8. Add more water if needed and cover with a lid to simmer on a medium heat until the rice and beans are properly cooked.
At this point, the liquid has dried completely from the rice and beans
9. Once the liquid is dried, discard the bay leaves and serve your red beans and rice, garnishwith chopped celery and with fried chicken or fish and enjoy it warm or hot.
Red beans and rice meal is served with celery and fried chicken