Rice and Red Beans
Ingredients
- One 16-ounce bag red kidney beans ⓘ
- 1 smoked ham hock
- 2 bay leaves ⓘ
- 6 cups water
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup Sofrito ⓘ
- 1/4 cup alcaparrado or coarsely chopped pimiento-stuffed olives (see Notes3) ⓘ
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin ⓘ
- 4 cups long-grain rice ⓘ
- 2 tablespoons fine sea or kosher salt
- Freshly ground pepper to taste ⓘ
- Chicken Broth, homemade or store-bought, as needed (5 to 6 cups) ⓘ
Instructions
- Place the beans, ham hock, and bay leaves in a 3-quart saucepan.
- Pour in enough water to cover the beans by 2 inches.
- Bring to a boil.
- Skim off the foam that rises to the surface and then adjust the heat so that the liquid is simmering.
- Cook the beans until tender, adding water as necessary to keep the beans submerged as they cook, about 2 hours.
- Add less water during the last half hour or so of cooking.
- The idea is to end up with tender beans and just enough liquid to cover them.
- See Beans on page 96 for more pointers on cooking them.
- Heat the oil in a 5-quart pot over medium heat.
- Stir in the sofrito and cook until the liquid has evaporated and the sofrito begins to sizzle.
- Stir in the alcaparrado and cumin.
- Add the rice, salt, and pepper and stir until the rice is coated with oil and seasonings and turns chalky.
- Drain the beans, saving 1/2 cup of liquid if you like.
- Stir the beans and culantro into the rice and then pour in the reserved cooking liquid, if using, and enough chicken broth to cover by the width of two fingers.
- Bring to a boil over high heat and boil without stirring until the level of the liquid reaches the rice.
- Give the rice a big stir, turn the heat to very low, and cover the pot.
- Cook until the liquid has been absorbed, about 20 minutes.
- Uncover the pot, give the rice a big stir, bringing the rice on the bottom to the top, and serve.
Nutrition & Diet Analysis (per serving)
412
kcal
21% DV
Protein
Fat
Carbs
* % Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet (FDA 2020).