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Lousiana Red Beans & Rice

The other night we had several friends over to the house to work on a secret project of little importance to national security. It was suggested that full people = happy people, so we decided to provide some sustenance. This was a great opportunity for the Laura I married and I to try the recipe that the Laura I did not marry gave us for real Louisiana Red Beans & Rice. We know this is an authentic recipe ’cause the Laura I did not marry is from Thibodaux and is certified Cajun. The Laura I married put this together and it was awesome, so I asked and received permission from the Laura I did not marry to post it here. So if you are not too confused by all these Laura’s yet, give it a try.

Louisiana Red Beans
Serves 6-8 people
recipe by Laura R. from Thibodaux
1 pound red beans, washed, drained, and soaked for at least 4-6 hours (preferably overnight)
3 cups water
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 large bay leaf, crushed
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 cup cooking oil
Salt and pepper
1 pound smoked sausage, sliced (I used hot)
2 T parsley, chopped
Steaming rice

Place beans in cold water in a 4-quart pot. Add garlic, celery, bay leaf, onion, and oil and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 2 hours. Add water as needed, stirring occasionally. Add salt, pepper, sausage, and parsley and continue cooking for about 1 hour. Serve over mound of steaming rice and enjoy!

4 Comments

  1. Robert

    I can handle more Lauras than that. Bring ’em on!

    As Chris Cross says, “Think of Laura”. It’s easy because about half the women I know are “Laura”, so if I can’t remember a name, I have a statistically safe fallback plan.

    …except when I don’t.

  2. Melissa

    I had to comment on this one as I am a certified Cajun and currently have family in Thibodaux. I swear this is identical to my Maw-Maw’s recipe. I will not be trying the recipe to see if they are the same though. I had to eat red beans & rice so much growing up (without sausage cause we were vegetarians) that I do not like them. At all. In fact, when asked what food I don’t like, other than unidentifiable meats, red beans & rice are at the top of the list. A Cajun that doesn’t like red beans & rice! Weird, right?

  3. duck

    Personally I have never married a Laura. Or a Thelma.

    In fact I only know one or two Laura’s, and you’re married to one of them.

    But I digress.

  4. roland stephens

    Hi! First of all, I must say your one funny monkey. That’s what I surmise in contrary to your claim that you are one boring ape. I enjoy reading some of your posts. I came across your Lousiana Red Beans & Rice recipe and I am definitely going to try this one. I’m not really a very good performer in the kitchen so I hope the whole process would be as little complicated as your outlook of having only two Lauras in this world- the one you married and the one you didn’t.

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