How to Make Perfect Red Beans & Rice (Louisiana Style)

Hello everybody, it is me, Dave, welcome to our recipe site. Today, we’re going to make a distinctive dish, red beans & rice (louisiana style). It is one of my favorites food recipes. This time, I am going to make it a little bit unique. This is gonna smell and look delicious.

Red Beans & Rice (Louisiana Style) is one of the most well liked of current trending meals on earth. It’s enjoyed by millions every day. It’s easy, it’s fast, it tastes yummy. They’re fine and they look fantastic. Red Beans & Rice (Louisiana Style) is something that I’ve loved my whole life.

To get started with this recipe, we have to first prepare a few components. You can have red beans & rice (louisiana style) using 21 ingredients and 8 steps. Here is how you cook that.

The ingredients needed to make Red Beans & Rice (Louisiana Style):

1. Get 1 lb. “dry” red kidney beans (or small red beans)
2. Take 4 cups vegetable stock
3. Make ready 1 cup water
4. Make ready 1 smoked ham hock (or hambone)
5. Get 2 dried bay leaves
6. Take Dash salt and pepper
7. Take 1 Tsp. dried thyme
8. Take 1/2 Tsp. cayenne pepper
9. Prepare 1/2 Tsp. dried sage
10. Make ready Dash Cajun seasonings
11. Prepare Dash olive oil
12. Take 1 lb. andouille sausage
13. Make ready 1 medium onion, diced
14. Take 1 green bell pepper, diced
15. Get 3 stalks celery, chopped fine
16. Make ready 2 Tbs. garlic, minced
17. Make ready 1 lb. cured ham, diced
18. Get 1-2 cups debris gravy (beef/pork gravy)
19. Make ready 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
20. Prepare Dash hot sauce & cider vinegar
21. Take 5-6 cups “cooked” long grain white rice

Steps to make Red Beans & Rice (Louisiana Style):

1. Day ahead: Soak beans overnight in a large pot of salted water. This hydrates the beans and reduces the overall cooking time the next day.
2. Drain the beans and then add the measured stock and water to the pot. Place the ham hock, bay leaves, and all the seasonings into the pot.
3. Bring this to a slight boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover (slightly ajar) and simmer for 2.5 hours. Stir occasionally.
4. [At the 2.5 hour mark …] - In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat and brown the andouille sausage for 3-4 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set aside to cool.
5. In the same pan, sauté onions, bell pepper, and celery in a little oil until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and heat this for another minute.
6. Transfer the vegetables to the simmering pot of beans. Slice the sausage (1/3 inch) and diced ham and add to the pot. Continue to simmer.
7. [At the 3.5 hour mark …] - Remove the ham hock, shred the meat, and add to the pot. Add the brown gravy and parsley with a dash of hot sauce and vinegar and stir. Heat this for 30 minutes.
8. Serve the bean-gravy (when the beans are tender) over steamed white rice, with a side of cornbread and enjoy.

Use Food to Improve Your Mood

A lot of us think that comfort foods are not good for us and that we have to avoid them. But if your comfort food is candy or junk food this holds true. Otherwise, comfort foods could be super nourishing and good for you. There are some foods that basically can improve your moods when you consume them. If you seem to be a little bit down and in need of an emotional pick me up, try a number of these.

Eggs, you may be amazed to discover, are terrific at fighting depression. Just make sure that you don’t get rid of the egg yolk. When you wish to cheer yourself up, the yolk is the most crucial part of the egg. Eggs, particularly the yolks, are full of B vitamins. These B vitamins are fantastic for helping to boost your mood. This is because these vitamins help your neural transmitters–the parts of your brain that dictate your mood–work better. Try to eat an egg and feel a lot better!

Make a trail mix from seeds and/or nuts. Almonds, cashews, peanuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, and so on are all great for raising your mood. This is because seeds and nuts have a lot of magnesium which boosts your brain’s serotonin levels. Serotonin is the “feel good” natural substance that tells your brain how you feel at all times. The higher your serotonin levels, the better you will feel. Not only that but nuts, specifically, are a fantastic protein source.

Cold water fish are excellent if you are wanting to be in a better mood. Cold water fish including tuna, trout and wild salmon are rich in DHA and omega-3s. These are two substances that boost the quality and function of the gray matter in your brain. It’s true: consuming a tuna fish sandwich can really help you fight back depression.

Grains can be wonderful for fighting a terrible mood. Quinoa, millet, teff and barley are all truly wonderful for helping boost your happiness levels. They help you feel full as well which can actually help to improve your mood. Feeling famished can be terrible! The reason these grains are so great for your mood is that they are easy for your stomach to digest. You digest these grains more quickly than other things which can help promote your blood sugar levels, which, in turn, helps make you feel better, mood wise.

Your mood could truly be helped by green tea. You knew it had to be mentioned in this article, right? Green tea is rich in an amino acid referred to as L-theanine. Studies prove that this particular amino acid can essentially stimulate brain waves. This helps improve your mental energy while at the same time making the rest of your body more relaxed. You were already aware that green tea could help you be so much healthier. Now you know that green tea can improve your mood as well!

As you can see, you don’t need to eat all that junk food when you are wanting to feel better! Go with these tips instead!