Black Beans and Rice
Janelle and I actually love the red beans and rice out of the box. Being the curious cook that I am, I wondered if I could create something like that from scratch. My first attempt… well, we don’t talk about my first attempt. But my second attempt was a resounding success! Here’s the recipe:
- One cup rice
- Two cans black beans, undrained
- Three or four cloves of garlic, chopped finely
- Two jalapeños, seeds and veins removed, chopped finely
- Three or four green onions, chopped
- One to one and a half pounds lean ham, cubed (optional)
- Some olive oil, for sauteeing (vegetable or canola oils will work, but olive is a bit healthier)
- One small can tomato paste
- One teaspoon cumin
- One tablespoon chili powder
- One bay leaf
Despite having two jalapeños, this is not a spicy dish. The seeds and veins contain most of the heat of the jalapeños, so leave some of that in if you want a spicy dish.
Prepare the rice according to the instructions. (For white rice, it’s usually two parts water, one part rice, on medium low for 30 minutes, but check on this.) While that’s cooking, put some oil in a large skillet (just enough to cover the bottom) and throw the garlic in there. Sautee for a few minutes, until it just starts to brown. Then, throw everything else but the beans and tomato paste in and sautee for five to ten minutes. Then, add the tomato paste, black beans with liquid, and an additional cup of water. It will look pretty soupy, but the rice will soak most of that up. Mix well and sautee for another few minutes, then mix in the rice and serve.
April 7th, 2011 at 4:03 am
If you want a nice, “denser” flavour, look into making some sofrito and adding it to your beans. Sofrito is basically just blended cilantro with olive oil, garlic, and onion. Basically, buy a bunch of cilantro and pulverize it in the blender. Add onion and garlic to taste, then add the olive oil to make it smooth. You’ll know when it’s done when you smell it and it feels like someone punched you in the heart.
Yes, that sounds a bit intimidating, but it’s delicious and adds a good depth of flavour, at least in my experience. It also freezes extremely well.
Note: You ONLY need a little bit when making anything. At most, half a tablespoon.
April 7th, 2011 at 4:05 am
Oh, and you can also try using sazon, which is basically just a blend of spices.
Sorry, I’m Puerto Rican and this is my favourite dish and my personal comfort food, so I got excited when I saw you’d written about it.