Red Beans for Beginners

Once again crock pot.

7-8 hours.
Whatever seasonings and trinity you like.

Doing my part bro.

Soak beans overnight. Drain the beans and set them aside. Reserve the leftover water and keep it aside.
Brown ham hocks or ham bone and sausage.
Chop up an onion, bell pepper and celery. Sautée in the grease from the ham and sausage. Throw in a clove of minced garlic toward the end.
Throw in the beans and the liquid from soaking. You want to have enough liquid to cover the beans by an inch or so. Add a bay leaf.
Bring the liquid to a boil and turn the heat down to a simmer. Dump in salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste.
Simmer for two or three hours, until beans are tender

2 lbs red beans
2 med to large onions, chopped
6 stalks celery,chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 lb good smoked sausage
.5 to 1 lb ham or Tasso, in small chunks
1 to 2 smoked ham hocks
1 T each, dried thyme, oregano and basil
2 or 3 bay leaves
2 T garlic, minced
1 bunch green onions, fine diced
1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, minced
Salt, red and black pepper to taste (start with 1/2 T each and adjust to taste)
Water or stock as set out below


Soak the beans a few hours, if you wish. Drain , or start with unsoaked beans.

Brown the sausage and remove from the pot. Add the trinity and sauté until the onions are translucent and beginning to carmelize. Add a T or 2 of oil if needed. Add the garlic for a minute or two, on med heat. Drop in the beans and 10 cups of water or ham stock...use 12 cups if you started with unsoaked beans,

Add the hocks and ham, or Tasso, and the salt and peppers., as well as the bay leaves.Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to low heat. Stir every 15 minutes or so.

After an hour and 15 minutes, stir a little more often, scraping the bottom to be sure they don't stick. Add the sausage and continue the simmer. Add the green onions at 1.5 hours. As the beans begin to break up, mash a cup or so of the beans against the side of the pot to get a creamy consistency. Add the parsley before serving.

You can add a little more water if needed as you cook. Taste as you go. You'll have a two hour cook time, maybe a little more.

What brand/type of sausage? Thanks everyone

I have a family connection to Savoies so that is my go to, also use Veron's or Martin's because it is pretty much in the neighborhood.

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Jacob's

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True!! Luckily I work with a guy from Laplace that doesn't mind smuggling some.

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Richard's

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Booooo!!! Hissssss!!!!


Nah, can't go wrong with almost anything.

Only thing I don't do is deer sausage. Usually I find it too dry for beans. Too much of a red meat flavor as well.

Also of you aren't doing cornbread then you might as well not even start on the beans.

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Cornbread should be a must.

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If he can't do red beans from scratch he is probably gonna have trouble with cornbread from scratch. May want to edit your beans recipe to add your cornbread recipe.

Put a couple of big fatty pork chops browned in them.