If you don’t live in Louisiana, you might not know that we’ve got a big carnival going on right now. Parades, marching bands, crazy costumes, and (of course) beads are daily sightings for the two weeks preceding Mardi Gras. It’s all gotten me in the mood for some classic New Orleans food—Red Beans and Rice!
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I made a classic version of Red Beans and Rice way back when this was just a baby blog, so I thought it was time to revisit this deliciously filling and inexpensive dish. While I absolutely looove pork products, I thought it would be fun to try a vegan version. To make up for the loss of andouille sausage’s smoky flavor, I added a heaping dose of smoked paprika (that stuff is magic!). Making sure there was a healthy amount of herbs and spices also helped keep the batch flavorful. A sprinkle of fresh green onions on top adds a final oomph of flavor and then I’m in red bean heaven. It’s so filling, so flavorful, and so real. The recipe is simple and requires only good, simple ingredients. That’s the way I like to eat.
Keep in mind that this is not a fast dish. The longer you cook it the better it gets. I cooked mine for 3 hours, but you don’t want to go any less than 2 hours, or else your beans won’t be soft. Also, I soaked my beans over night, so you’ll want to plan this at least a day ahead. It’s worth it. Promise.
As an afterthought, I stirred a spoonful of coconut oil into one of my bowls and it added that lovely, velvety, rich flavor that you can only get from saturated fat (usually provided by the pork). So, if you still feel like you’re missing that pork derived richness, try adding a lil’ coconut oil.
Vegan Red Beans and Rice
Servings 6 to 8 servings (about 10 cups total)Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 1 medium yellow onion ($0.52)
- 1 medium bell pepper ($0.97)
- 4 stalks celery ($0.50)
- 4 cloves garlic ($0.32)
- 1 lb dry red beans ($1.59)
- 6 cups vegetable broth* ($0.78)
- 1 tsp thyme ($0.10)
- 1 tsp oregano ($0.10)
- 1 whole bay leaf ($0.15)
- 1/2 Tbsp smoked paprika ($0.15)
- Freshly cracked pepper (about 10-15 cranks of a pepper mill) ($0.05)
- pinch cayenne pepper ($0.02)
- 6 cups cooked rice ($1.04)
- 1 bunch green onions, sliced ($0.79)
Instructions
- The night before, Place your beans in a large pot and fill with enough cool water to cover the beans by a few inches. Place the beans in the refrigerator to soak over night.
- When you’re ready to cook, finely dice the celery, bell pepper, and onion, and mince the garlic. Cook the celery, bell pepper, onion, and garlic in a large pot with the olive oil over medium heat until softened (5-7 minutes).
- Drain the soaked beans in a colander and rinse with fresh, cool water. Add the rinsed beans to the pot with the vegetables. Also add the vegetable broth, thyme, oregano, bay leaf, smoked paprika, some freshly cracked pepper, and a pinch of cayenne pepper.
- Place a lid on the pot and bring it up to a full boil over high heat. After it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low and allow the pot to simmer for at least two hours. Make sure the pot is simmering the entire time, increasing the heat if needed. Stir the pot occasionally to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom. Keep the lid in place the entire time to keep the beans from drying out.
- After two hours (or longer if desired) the beans should be soft and tender. Mash some of the beans against the side of the pot with the back of a spoon. This will thicken the pot and make the classic, creamy texture of the dish. Remove the bay leaf and allow the pot to simmer for about 30 minutes more (after smashing) to help it thicken.
- To serve, add a scoop of red beans to a bowl and top with a scoop warm, cooked rice. Sprinkle sliced green onions over top and add a dash of hot sauce if desired.
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Vegan Red Beans and Rice – Step by Step Photos
The night before, soak one pound of red beans in the refrigerator. Add the beans to a large pot and then add enough cool water to cover the beans by about a few inches (they’ll absorb water as they soak, so make sure to enough water to keep them covered as they expand). If you didn’t presoak your beans, you can use the “quick soak” method, but that still takes at least an hour.
When you’re ready to begin, finely dice four stalks of celery, one bell pepper, one onion, and mince four cloves of garlic.
Sauté the vegetables in a large pot with olive oil over medium heat until they are soft (about 5-7 minutes).
Drain the soaked beans in a colander and rinse with fresh water. Add the rinsed beans to the pot with the vegetables.
Also add 6 cups of vegetable broth, 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp oregano, 1/2 Tbsp smoked paprika, 1 whole bay leaf, some freshly cracked pepper (about 10-15 cranks of a mill), and a pinch of cayenne (I like it a little more spicy, so I added 1/4 tsp). Give the pot a good stir, then place a lid on top and bring it up to a full boil over high heat. Once it reaches a full boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer for at least two hours (with lid), stirring occasionally. Make sure it’s simmering the whole time, turning the heat up slightly if necessary.
After a minimum of two hours, the beans should be soft enough to smash with the back of a large spoon. Smash a good portion of the beans until they begin to take on a thick, creamy consistency. You could use an immersion blender instead, but just make sure not to purée the entire pot. You want some whole beans in there. Let the pot simmer for another 30 minutes or so after smashing the beans to let it thicken a little more.
Serve the beans with a scoop of warm, cooked rice over top and a sprinkle of fresh, sliced green onion. A splash of hot sauce is also a nice touch – the vinegar in the hot sauce helps bright everything up and gives a kick of flavor.
I make this at least twice a month. Great recipe. I do use canned beans instead and still tastes great. Thank you!
Looks amazing
Made these in the Instant Pot using Rancho Gordo’s “Domingo Rojo” red beans. It is divine! Did a quick soak for 1 hour in boiled water (covered, off the heat), sautéed veggies in IP, no change in ingredients, cooked on high pressure 50 minutes with quick release after. Mashed and simmered on low sauté for 15 minutes. Perfection!
If I’m allergic to bell pepper, what would you suggest I substitute for it? Excited to try this recipe!
You could just omit it or if you like the taste of fennel or okra you could add that!
I often substitute anaheim or poblano peppers for green bell peppers.
Five stars perfection. I add some jalapeño slices, cilantro and squirt of citrus at the end.
This recipe is SOOOOO GOOOOOD! Can’t recommend enough! :)
Does anyone know if the nutrition info provided is for all 10 cups or pre serving? I assume it is per serving but just making sure
It would be per serving!
I tried this, so yummy. I added a touch of liquid smoke to add smoky favor from the lack of andioulle sausage and a large roasted jalapeno for spice.
I made this recipe exactly as written and it was perfection. The Better than Bullion adds enough salt. The seasoning is just right, all blends so that nothing in particular stands out. This will be going into regular rotation.
Prices not accurate for all Organic.
I actually ate this 3 nights in a row without getting tired of it – that’s how satisfying it was and I’m not a vegetarian. These are really quite tasty! I did make some minor changes – I used homemade chicken stock which added great flavor, and I used a little less liquid because I didn’t want it too brothy. I’m personally not a fan of smashing beans to thicken something – I just don’t care for that texture. But if you cook it long enough you don’t need to; the broth with thicken on its own, just monitor the amount of liquid in the pot.
So happy to find a great tasting bean dish that both my dad and I enjoy to put into his vegetarian rotation!
What other beans could you use instead?!
This really is a recipe specifically for red beans, but that being said you can cook any type of bean using this same method, it just wouldn’t be the same recipe anymore. :)
Hi Ellie! Try black beans or pinto beans.
Delicious. Tastes just like beans my grandma from Louisiana made, minus the smoked ham or salt pork, and the meat wasn’t even missed. Thank you!!
This looks like a good candidate for a slow cooker. I’m thinking I could put the soaked beans in the slow cooker with the sautéed veggies, broth, etc. Have you tried it?
You have to be really careful with beans in slow cookers. If you’re using kidney beans, they have a natural toxin that needs to be heavily boiled for ten minutes to break down. Slow cookers don’t usually get quite hot enough to do the job.
Thank you! I won’t do it.
Thank you for this recipe!!!!! I can’t express how much I love these beans!
This recipe makes a delicious pot of beans. I soaked the beans last night and cooked them this morning in the slow cooker. The beans had that perfect creamy texture and the broth thickened just right. I sauteed the veggies in my cast iron skillet while the beans were cooking – I used coconut oil like you suggested – and added them to the pot. So good! Served this with brown rice and tossed green salad.
Very good but needed a bit of salt – a tsp is enough.
Would this be suitable for freezing?
Go for it! XOXO -Monti
Hi! This recipe looks wonderful and I can’t wait to try it! Would you mind telling me which Better Than Bouillon you use…seasoned Veggie base or No Chicken base? Thank you!
Hi Bethany! Beth uses the regular BTB veggie base. XOXO -Monti
Loved this recipe. Made it mostly according to directions, but did a few swaps to preventing food waste and increasing flavor. I have started regularly swapping out celery for fennel. I can never use celery before it goes bad, but I found that many soups that call for it actually taste better when swapping out fennel. And eliminates having rotting celery in my fridge weeks later. I also added some red pepper powder with the rest of the spices and 10 drops of liquid smoke at the end of simmering. garnished with the green onion and a teaspoon of sour cream.
Such a great idea- thank you! I love fennel and hate wasting celery, brilliant!
How would you adjust this recipe when using canned kidney beans?
You’ll need 58 ounces of drained and rinsed canned beans (3 to 4 cans depending on the size you buy). You will also need to lower the amount of liquid in the recipe (just add liquid to cover), and you will only need to cook for about 30 minutes. XOXO -Monti
I’m native New Orleanian, but have lived the past 25 years in sunny Florida. This red beans vegan recipe when followed exactly makes the best-tasting ‘pot o’ red beans’ every single time. Everyone I’ve served them up to, loves them! It’s easy to put grilled andouille alongside for the ‘carni’ folks! Growing up, red beans and rice was served every Monday for lunch at public schools. Much nostalgia and as anyone from NOLA knows, within 10 minutes or less of meeting anyone, we’re talking good food, and ‘how’s ya mom and dem?’ Beth you nailed this recipe, and ‘put your foot in it’! Kudos and big thanks to you!
Meat eater here. I cannot believe this recipe is vegan! All the flavor without added calories of sausage. The recipe really does make a ton of servings as written but it ALL was eaten. Only suggestion is adding salt, which I did with Lawry’s seasoning salt.
This recipe was fantastic! I cooked my beans for about four-five hours in the end, and followed the instructions to the letter. Will definitely make again!
This recipe was amazing! Thanks so much!
This was great! My kids and husband loved it too, and are not vegan, so its great for a variety of tastes. I cooked it for 4 or 5 hours, and the flavors just got better.
will this work with a instant pot
I tried this recipe tonight; was up long before the birds this morning so could soak the beans quite easily for 9 good hours and still have this on the table for dinner.
When I went for the smoked paprika, I was disappointed that the amount I had left didn’t quite fill my 1/2 Tbsp – it was only about 3/4 full. I was hoping that wouldn’t make a difference.
And…YUM. Just double yum. This is SO good. You seriously don’t even miss the meat – you don’t know it’s not there!!
I love that it makes a ton and I can now eat on it all week for lunch. Without the rice it is pretty salty (I find the recommended bouillon quite salty) but gosh it’s still tasty, and the rice takes it down to utterly perfect.
NOM NOM NOM.
Great recipe, I have been wanting to eat red beans and rice for ages now, but haven’t because of having a vegetarian family. Lovely texture. I put in an extra green pepper and not enough beans so the colour was a little off. But it was yum yum yum
Mine is still cooking but I’ve already found that 6 cups wasn’t nearly enough liquid. I’ve added 3+ extra cups of water so far. If I hadn’t, the pot would have burned.
Looking forward to tasting the final product!
Can this recipe be cooked in my ninja foodi? If so, do I follow the same instructions like the recipe with the smoked meat?
I’m sorry, I’ve never used a Ninja Foodi, so I’m not sure.
How is this so good? Honestly was surprised how much flavor was packed into these little beans. I was short on time so decided to try this in the slow cooker. I also forgot to soak my beans 🤦♀️ but I was using small red beans and NOT kidney beans so that worked out. I sauteed the veggies and put them in the slow cooker with the seasonings and broth and beans and cooked on high for 6 hours. Pulsed a bit with an immersion blender and it was amazing! I know the recipe is red beans AND rice but personally I would say rice is optional with this recipe if you want to stretch it a bit more. I really preferred the beans by themselves because they had such a great flavor and were so filling! I made half the amount of rice as the recipe calls for and still had 6 good size portions.
This was delicious and easy to make!
Very Tasty! I did add a bit of celery salt though. Bravo!
Has anyone tried this in the instant pot?
Hi, I’d like to make this in the crockpot. What modifications would you suggest? Thanks.
I’d need to test that before offering suggestions, unfortunately. Also, you need to make sure you don’t use kidney beans if using a slow cooker. Kidney beans contain a high level of a natural toxin that needs to be boiled heavily for at least 10 minutes to break down, and slow cookers often don’t get them quite hot enough to accomplish this.
Canned bean workaround: Use four cans of kidney beans (drained) with four cups of broth. Let simmer uncovered for about half an hour.
The whole family loves this!
I made this just yesterday and as an adaptation to try and recreate the traditional dish but still vegan I used plant based chorizo (couldn’t find plant based andouille at the local store), and it turned out amazing. A great way to still get the protein in and have it as close to traditional as possible while remaining vegan. Will definitely be making this again soon!!
Loved the step by step photos and explanation of this recipe. It made cooking this amazing dish so easy! By chance, my store brand beans labeled the bag ‘red beans’ even though they are pinto beans. I didn’t realise this until I spotted the difference in the pictures here and confirmed the images of red versus pinto online. I went ahead and prepared the recipe using pinto beans, and it turned out super tasty. Thanks, Beth!
I have made this recipe so many times previously and it is worth the effort every single time. I recently moved from Mississippi to Ireland and tonight I decided to make this for the first time since moving. Even though it was difficult to locate the right kind of beans, and I didn’t have my Better Than Bouillon, it still turned out amazing. I just want to thank you for bringing me so much comfort while I am missing home. My only problem is Ireland’s lack of Crystal Hot Sauce to pair with it (Tesco sells Tabasco, though)!
I’ve made several Budget Bytes recipes and enjoyed them all, but this could become my favorite. I love the simplicity of the ingredients making something so savory and comforting, yet good for you! I love Better Than Bouillon and it’s my go-to for veggie broth. Thanks for another delicious dish!
I became a vegetarian over a year ago and I’ve been really upset that I haven’t been able to enjoy my Mimi’s red beans. This recipe felt like home! I absolutely loved it. I used red kidney beans since the store didn’t sell red beans and it worked out perfectly. I added salt and some Tony’s to my taste, but my one suggestion to those making this is to add about a fourth of a cup of vegetable or canola oil halfway through the simmering process. It really makes the beans creamy. Thank you so much for this recipe, it really brought me joy during this quarantine :)
Killer! Made this today. Excellent!Thanks you!
I’ve got a pot of these simmering away right now and they smell AMAZING! Thank you for the wonderful vegetarian and vegan recipes!
I made both the vegan and traditional one (with sausage https://www.budgetbytes.com/louisiana-red-beans-rice/ ) at the same time. The only change was I did not use celery, which I hate.
Both were excellent.
This is AMAZING! I added salt but shouldn’t have since the broth already had salt in it. Am eating the leftovers now for my lunch so must run to have another spoonful! THANK YOU!!!!!!
Why don’t you use salt in this recipe? I’m cooking it now and it just occurred to me that it doesn’t call for it!
Thanks!
You can certainly salt to your taste if you’d like.
I made this great dish with vegan Beyond spicy Italian Sauage. And I also roasted garlic instead of garlic powder. It was awesome.
Are red Chili beans the same as the red beans you used here?
Yes those will work!
I was lucky enough to get some real red beans (the small kind) from a friend and used your recipe to cook them as I am vegetarian. They turned out so well, my husband and I were really happy. I am making my second batch today. Thanks for a great recipe.
The first time I made this with dried beans ( leaving out the bell pepper and oregano) and it was delicious! The next time I used 4 cans of small red beans, half an onion, 2 celery stalks, the same amount of spices, and just enough vegetable broth to cover the beans. Since they were already cooked I brought them to a boil and then let them simmer for about 20 minutes. It was pretty good. Not as good as the version with dried beans, the shorter cooking time means less time for the spices to infuse the beans, and it was a bit salty (even though I rinsed the beans and didn’t add salt). I saw someone in the comments ask about using canned beans so I thought I’d share my experience.
Thank you for adding your experience, Crystal! I was just wondering if I should take a shortcut, and now I won’t ;)
My family loved this meal! Thanks for a great recipe!
Sooo good, I wasn’t ready!
Add a capful of liquid smoke for a “meatier” taste.
Oh great tip Maggie!
Really good addition of paprika for smoke. I’m from New Orleans and decided not to smash the beans but, instead use my grandma’s hack of making a roux. When sauteing the veggies, add flour, veggie stock and either vegan butter or coconut oil. I used the latter. These were really good, extra Crystal hotsauce really set it off! Thanks!
Good to know Sandi. I LOVE Crystal hot sauce!
I made this and it was great! I added a little more smoked paprika when I smashed the beans because I wanted it to be a little smokier. Topped it with some Crystal and YUM.
Heya Beth! Is it possible to make this in an Instant Pot?
Yes, I bet this would convert nicely to the IP. Unfortunately I haven’t tried it myself, so I can’t offer exact instructions, but I would probably do the first step with the onion, celery, and garlic using the sauté function, then add everything else and use the bean function. You may need to add a little extra time, since you want the beans really, really soft so they break down and get creamy.
Can we used canned beans instead?
Unfortunately, since canned beans are already cooked, this recipe would need to be altered quite a bit to work with canned beans and I can’t advise without doing some testing.
Can I cook the beans over night in a slow cooker instead of on the stove top? Maybe on a low setting?
It’s not advised to cook beans that are in the kidney bean family in a slow cooker because they have a natural toxin that can only be broken down by boiling heavily for at least ten minutes. The slow cooker never gets it up to a strong enough boil for that to happen. :(
Wonderful! Even my meat and potatoes husband loved it.
I actually used a bean masher we got in New Mexico & it works perfectly. Also I used the coconut oil a commenter suggested a little more cayenne. Making this for the third time in as many weeks. Delicious!
I’m not sure if we need to use a certain kind of broth but this was awful. I wasted all of those vegetables. I’m sure it was good and great for some, but I really wish it would’ve worked for me.
I made this for my vegan friends last night. All of us had tried smoked paprika before and weren’t a huge fan but I took a chance and used it anyways. This was amazing! The smoked paprika gave it that classically smoked flavor. The only think I think it missed was some sort of acid to cut the creaminess of the beans. I tried a dash of red wine vinegar but I am wondering what else could be used and still taste great. Thanks for all of your hard work and dedication to affordable recipes!
I always squeeze some fresh lime juice in mine.
Can’t go wrong with a little citrus twist!
This was GREAT! Really flavorful. The idea of using smoked paprika is brilliant. I’ve had it sitting around forever and now I have a great use for it. Also the idea to use coconut oil for richness – it worked. It’s tough to get something vegan to taste as rich as a meat-flavored dish but this was. I used twice as much paprika, and added about 2TB of Marash pepper as well. Let’s be real though, it does need salt! Anyway thanks for an addition to my repertoire.
Can I use this same recipe and seasonings for most beans? Some including Pinto and Kidney?
Yes, absolutely. :) It’s great with white beans, too.
The store didn’t have red beans today :( I’ve made this recipe before and absolutely love it. I bought kidney beans to try and sub. Do you think that is an ok sub that will be pretty similar?
Yes, that will still work. :)
Following up on the coconut oil: would you suggest cooking that into the pot or adding in before serving?
It’s probably easier to just stir it into the whole pot so that each serving is consistent, but you could certainly just add it to each bowl (a smaller amount, of course) if you prefer. :)
I made this recipe today and it came out great! I will say that I added some spicy Tony’s cajun seasoning to the final product because I thought it needed a little bit of more salt and I didn’t have hot sauce on me. I also cooked your homemade cornbread recipe to go with the red beans and rice and it was a match made in heaven. :)
Hooray!
Made this in the IP… delicious! Did not soak the beans so I did it on manual 50 minutes with a natural release.
Thanks for this! I’ve made it before and it’s wonderful, but was going to be –lazy– efficient and make it in the IP tonight and wanted to make sure it wouldn’t ruin anything. Thanks so much for the confirmation!
I just wanted to throw it out there that I have made a slow cooker version of this recently, and it was great! I followed steps 1-3 exactly, but at step 4 I transferred everything to the crock pot after the beans were at a rolling boil for about 15 minutes. I used about 12 oz of dried beans instead of one pound, but kept the same amount of liquid so that the beans wouldn’t dry out in the crock pot. They stayed in the crock pot all day for about 10 hours, and they were perfect for our Monday night red beans get together. I sauteed some andouille sausage on the side for the carnivores as well.
Finally got around to making this today and it was worth every second spent in the kitchen. While i did unfortunately forget to add the Onion, aswell as having to substitute some of the spices, the end result was still great!
How long to cook if I don’t soak the beans overnight? (I never plan my meals that far in advance. :-))
If you don’t soak overnight, you’ll want to use this Quick Soak Method before adding them to the recipe.
What beans do I look for? Are they actually labeled “red beans” on the bag?
Yes, in the south small “red beans” are quite common, but you may not be able to find them everywhere in the country. If not, you can still make this with red kidney beans. :)
Thanks, I found some! One more question…I don’t have any celery. Would it make that big of a difference if I left it out? Or could I sun something else for it?
Hmmm, I think I’m on the fence about that one. I can’t think of anything that would be appropriate to substitute for the celery, and I DO think it adds a lot, but I also think you could probably get away with not using it. Just keep in mind that it will definitely be better if you do have celery.
Dear Danie, use another vegetable like carrot or leeks. Especially carrot is very cheap in the Netherlands (and Germany).
I forgot to soak the beans overnight, so I did a quick soak (boiled for two minutes, then turned the heat off, but left the lid on for an hour). I did find the beans a bit bland during cooking, so I added salt and Tony Cachere’s seasoning. I also had to sub yellow pepper for the green. Served with brown rice. Very good!
I’ve basically been working my way through the recipes on this site, and was in the mood for red beans and rice. I knew I needed to check Budget Bytes for a recipe first. As usual, another great, simple, flavorful recipe! We didn’t have smoked paprika but it was still delicious.
I left 5 stars but for some reason it didn’t take in Chrome :/
I make this regularly for my vegan, vegetarian, and meat loving friends (just cook up a little smoked sausage on the side!). It delicious, easy, and so cheap!
I’ve made this many times. The smoked paprika is an excellent substitute for the missing meat. I serve this with rice and cornbread. Awesome!
This recipe revamped my interest in cooking for myself! I found your website via a Reddit post and I love your website. I go to school full-time right now while trying to stay on a low food budget. I am glad that I can eat yummy meals.
First time I made red beans and rice. My husband really thought it was nice. I didn’t have smoked paprika so I added a bit of liquid smoke.
I made it in the pressure cooker. Presoaked the beans and then after sauteing the vegetables, I added the beans and 3 cups of water and cooked it for 12 minutes on high pressure. After that I added the rest of the ingredients and followed the recipe to the end.
Also, I should add I used beef bouillon instead of vegetable.
This recipe is the bomb! I did not miss the meat at all. My hubby loved it as well. We won’t have enough to freeze because we are going through this quickly. I ate so much that I hope my beano worked. (smiley face). The green onions really made the recipe pop. I did not change anything at all. Well… I used brown rice. I can’t wait to look at other recipes from this site.
Thanks!
Great recipe! I added vegan chorizo sausage which gave it great spicy flavor.
Fantastic! I used half and half black-eyed beans and black beans (since I was out of red beans) and subbed garlic oil and onion powder for the garlic and onion (for those of us whose bodies don’t like onion and garlic). Also celery seeds since I was out of celery.
Delicious! We ate way more than I expected. Even Mr 5 liked it.
I used to get your Budget Bytes feed in my inbox back in 2009 in Kenya and was delighted to see this site pop up again when looking for new recipes. Congratulations on a long and awesome journey of helping people make great food!
Thank you!!
This is the recipe I was looking for when I first found this site. It was delicious and worth the time. I did take the shortcut of using canned red beans. It worked great and I was able to cook it for about two hours. I love how this site is set up to be so adjustable with number of servings, etc. I’m using several recipes to make my grocery list for the week.
How could I convert this to a slow cooker recipe and still use red beans? The recipe looks amazing!
I made this today. I didn’t have smoked paprika, so I used a teaspoon of natural liquid smoke. I don’t miss the smoked sausage at all.
Thank you for a great recipe!
Eric
This recipe sounds amazing. Is there anything that can replace the bell pepper flavor? Bell peppers of any kind have never agreed with me, any suggestions on a swap?
I’d probably just leave them out. I’m not sure there is anything that is similar in flavor.
I too have a problem with bell peppers. I have found that if I use Mini Sweet Peppers it does the trick without all the unagreeableness of the bell.
90% of the time I can eat organic peppers, a bout 5% of e ime I can eat non – organinc peppers
Easily one of my favourite recipes. So tasty and warming to the belly and soul!
I add a little corriander/cilantro with the green onions to finish, I find it really adds another dimension to it, you may find it sacrilege!
Thanks so much for this recipe.
I’m so excited to have found your blog, truly!! And I can’t say enough about this recipe. I found your blog on Friday, by Saturday I made these vegan red beans and rice – this recipe is excellent!!! I have eaten them all weekend, delicious and so filling. I didn’t see any mention of salt so be sure to add a little. I’m originally from Houma, where in southern Louisiana do you live?
If I used pinto beans instead of red beans, do you still think it would work OK if I used the slow cooker? I work full time, so by the time I get home, cooking is last thing I want to do. The slow cooker is awesome. I love how simple this recipe is. Sometimes other recipes I have seen for this dish are way overly complicated, etc
I can’t wait to try this.
Yes, you can do pinto in the slow cooker. :)
I made this for my friends today. They all ate heartily! I used adzuki beans, they are smaller than red beans but they worked the same way. It cooks quicker too. I’ll be making this more in the future! =D
It’ll never taste quite like my mom’s growing up, but then again, she used ham seasoning and I wasn’t vegetarian then. :)
This is a fine go-to recipe, though I sometimes make two additions to make things a bit more sumptuous
1. a drop or two of liquid smoke. this is doing the same work as the paprika, but the liquid smoke just replicates the andouille vibe that’s missing, and I don’t find it too much when used alongside the paprika.
2. This might be blasphemous, but your coconut rice recipe is DOPE with red beans. Just makes things a little richer and more flavorful. Not sure I’d do it to the traditional meat version, but since I’m already bucking tradition with the veganism, a little coconut milk won’t get me excommunicated, I hope. ;)
…and then of course some Tony’s, but that’s as likely to happen at the table as during the cooking.
Thanks for supplying this NOLA diaspora vegetarian with a much needed classic.
If I cooked in a slow cooker, how long on high?
It’s not advised to cook red beans in a slow cooker from dry because they need to be boiled for at least ten minutes to break down a natural compound that they have which can be toxic and cause severe gastric distress.
Followed your recipe exactly. It turned out wonderfully! Will most definitely be making it often!
this is very delicious but my family and i had to put a lot of salt, it is very bland. other than that, thank you so much for the recipe! i will save this dish to make another time. :)
Maybe the cook forgot to include the salt. But it was a stroke of luck for you. One of the major rules in cooking beans is that you NEVER add salt until the beans are done. Salting beans at the start of cooking or any time before they are absolutely done will insure that the beans will stay hard, and you will never get the soft creamy consistency described in the recipe.
This recipe rocks! Made it the other day – followed recipe to the “T”. If you use low sodium veg broth, it does need a little extra salt, maybe 1/2 tsp, but the taste is really amazing. I did mess up and mash up too many of my beans so it was a bit more “soupy” than my wife preferred.
I did also include some of the celery leaves from the center stalks. They seem to have a more subtle flavor than the celery stalk itself.
Hi There –
I am going to try this dish do you have nutrition facts?
Thanks!
When I made it, the yield was about 9 cups, which came out to 140 calories/cup. That might vary depending on how exactly you prepare it, but the whole recipe (not including the rice) only has 1260 calories, give or take.
Does the ten cup yield include the rice?
No, that’s just the beans. Sorry for the confusion!
Beth, when you freeze this recipe do you freeze the beans and rice separately? Or do you freeze/reheat it all together? Does it make a difference?
Thanks for everything you do!
You can actually freeze the rice and beans together and they reheat really well together in one dish in the microwave. :) If you need to reheat it on the stove top, I’d just freeze the beans themselves and maybe make fresh rice (I don’t know how to reheat rice without a microwave).
Wow, this honestly came out delicious! So much nicer than I expected. I added loads of cayenne which gave it a really nice kick. Chucked it in the slow cooker and the flavours enthused beautifully. Thanks so much. Very impressed
Very delicious vegan recipe. I used 5 cans of kidney beans, 2 1/2 blended with the broth, vegetables and spices. I cooked the blended beans, broth and veggies for 2-3 hours. Then added the 2 1/2 cans of drained rinsed beans for about 1 more hour of simmering. I also added 3 shakes of Frank’s Red Hot Original and a little salt.
Very, very good.
This is a great recipe! Thank you. Do you know the macros?
No, I’m sorry, I don’t. :(
Awesome, making this tomorrow! Will this reheat well and if so how should I do it? Thank you so much, I’ll be sure to report how this goes tomorrow :)
I usually use the microwave, but you could also do it in a sauce pot over medium-low heat. Either way, stir often. :)
Oh my goodness! This is to die for. I did put in the coconut oil and it blends with the spices. You swear you’re going to bite into sausage. Best beans and rice recipe I have ever had and I have tried a lot of them. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
I just made this today and it was really delicious! We didn’t have any smoked paprika so I used a little chili powder and cumin. I also added in a 1/2 tsp of Cajun seasoning.
Thanks for this awesome recipe!
Love your website! We eat mostly vegetarian and by nature of what you do, there are a lot of great looking veg recipes here. Vegan Red Beans and Rice is to die for, even with my modifications of using what I had on hand (canned beans using Justin’s post for guidance, Not Chick’n bouillon cubes instead of vegetable broth). Any suggestion on how much coconut oil to use for the whole recipe? Started with a scant TBSP and don’t want to ruin a good thing. Your site reminded me of when our household would do “fiscal fasts” (inspired by the book “The Cheapskates Guide to Ultimate Happiness”) and not buy groceries for the week. We’d get creative with what was in the freezer and pantry. You can make some pretty good homemade flour tortillas with very few ingredients! It was a good way to clean house, and reduce the monthly food bill. Thank you for all of your work! Best wishes.
Note – I was way off on that book title. It’s been a while since reading it. It is “The Ultimate Cheapskates Road Map to True Riches.”
Hi Wen, can you elaborate on how you used canned beans instead of dried?
Hi Emily, I followed the recommendation of another poster, Justin. “..5 regular cans of red beans, rinsed and drained. 2 went directly into the pot, 3 went into a blender with just enough water to make it move…”
Next time I’m going to switch it to 2 blended cans. It’s just a texture preference on our part and since I used the full amount of broth it took a long time to simmer down which served to break down some of the beans.
This looks great. Any ideas on a side item to make with this?
Sautéed greens are always nice (collards, mustard greens, spinach, kale).
Awesome idea. Thanks.
I cook cabbage and cornbread muffins whenever I make these beans.
I’m making half a batch because I forgot somehow that 2 cups makes a pound of dry beans…I’m also using the slow cooker because I’m being lazy today. Took the precooked rice out of the freezer, this will be a nice late dinner. Forgot to halve the garlic though, no vampires will be bothering me tonight, ha ha.
Love this recipe, very warm and comforting. I find it’s a little bland as written, so I add some Cajun seasoning blend to taste, and some salt. Also my boyfriend taught me the secret of warm-tasting food: just a little bit of cinnamon. It adds to the flavor without you really noticing it’s cinnamon, give it a try.
I usually cook the whole pound of beans but only enough rice for half, then put the rest of the beans in the freezer for later in the month. I’ll defrost them and mix with fresh rice when I’m short on time, and they hold up really well. I don’t know where to get “small red beans” in the midwest, so I’m using red kidney beans. I’m also not soaking them so they take ages to cook, but I will simmer the un-soaked beans in the broth and spices for 2 hours, then sauté the garlic and veggies in another pan and cook it all together for a couple more hours, give or take. That way the veggies aren’t totally disintegrated. I also keep having to add water multiple times to keep the beans submerged, but I think it’s because my pan lids don’t fit tight.
By “red beans”, do you mean kidney beans? Or any kind of red bean? What do you normally use?
We have a type of bean here in the south that are just called “red beans” or “small red beans”, but kidney beans will work as well.
Where I live in Texas, we have Hispanic food sections or Ethnic food sections. Inthose, I can find a brand called “Goya.” Goya has red beans that resemble kidney beans but are smaller. They are the dry beans. Good luck,
This was very delicious! It’s also quite filling so not a bad idea for people on a diet. :)
I love it how you also have some vegan recipes.
Beth!!!
My boyfriend and I love this recipe! We were wondering how we could make it using our crockpot? Let us know!
I think I’d need to experiment with that a bit before offering guidance. If you use red beans that are in the kidney bean family, though, you’ll want to use fully cooked beans in the slow cooker. Slow cookers don’t get them hot enough to cook out the natural compound that they contain which can cause sever gastric distress.
Words can not express how delicious this was. I only had half a bag of beans, so I halved the recipe, and then after I’d tried it I was so distraught that I didn’t have the full batch! Normally I’d skip the green onions because I rarely use the whole bunch, but I needed some for another recipe so I went ahead and used them to top the beans. I was SO glad I did. They added a scrumptious little pop to the dish. The only alteration I made was to use beef bouillon instead of vegetable because that’s what i had on hand. I know that would’ve altered the flavor of the dish, but it did so in a marvelous way. My husband loved it too. I’ll definitely be making this one again.
This is great! Just really really fantastic delicious! This is definitely going into the regular rotation. Thank you!
And I didn’t use smoked paprika because it’s ridiculous expensive here. So I used 3/4 tbs regular paprika and 1/4 tbs hickory smoke powder.
This recipe looks wonderful and I have it on the stove right now. A quick question whether you season with salt? I didn’t see it in your ingredient list.
I actually didn’t because my vegetable broth contains quite a bit of salt, so when I use it I rarely need to add any extra. So, it will definitely depend on what type of broth you use. It’s always best to season with salt at the end, too, because it has more punch and then you don’t have to use as much. :)
I am impressed that you calculated the cost for everything. Good Job! I will try this!
Btw …5 stars of course!
Omg! I tried these today. So good! I am really happy with how these turned out…thanks for a great and easy to follow recipe! :) all the best!
Fantastic rice&bean recipe! I use my pressure cooker, and pinto beans, and brown rice, but otherwise followed the recipe pretty closely. Love the Better Than Bouillon soup base. I’ve added grated sharp cheddar (or not) along with the green onions and tobasco. Been practically living off this for the last couple weeks. Thanks for sharing this!
So delicious. At work they make a rue with flour. Glad to find a glutn free recipe. I can’t understand why someone would use flour to thicken the beans. Thank you for this great heart friendly recipe:)
I was so impressed by this recipe! I worked as a sous chef at a NOLA restaurant know for its red beans and this certainly approximates the flavor we went for…all without animal products!
A couple changes I made for ease, and what I had on hand:
I didn’t have time to cook beans, so I used 5 regular cans of red beans, rinsed and drained. 2 went directly into the pot, 3 went into a blender with just enough water to make it move. Blend and whisk into soup. I like my red beans a little thicker than some, so add it slowly until it becomes as thick as you like it.
Add 1 tbsp (or to taste) of Louisiana hot sauce (can replace cayenne)
Heat this to boil on a stove, reduce to simmer for about 10-15 minutes, /then/ throw it in a slow cooker on low for a couple hours or until ready to eat!
Thanks for this recipe. I’m a vegan Northerner that is moving to Louisiana. I made this tonight for my nonvegan, vegetable-avoiding fiance, and he said it was better than his mother’s. Not bad for a first try from a Yankee. Thanks again!!
Tried this tonight, and it was amazing. Simply unreal. This is the epitome of real. Wonderful food, very flavorful and wholesome. Easy recipe, and since I don’t like celery, just used more onion. Worked out well.
It’s going in my ‘staples’ rotation, for sure.
I’ve never ever commented on a recipe, but after scouring the web tonight because I had not pinned this when I made it the first time…well, it deserves a comment. Fabulous! These were absolutely delicious. I have been vegetarian since I was a child & these are hands down the best beans that I’ve ever made. Kudos to you for such a fantastic recipe. (I’ve pinned it this time!).
Is the crushed pepper the recipe calls for red pepper or black pepper? Thanks!
Black peppercorns or a peppercorn medley.
Thank you so much for this recipe! My family and I enjoyed it immensely!
Could you use black beans or fava beans for this recipe instead?
Black beans might work, but I’ve never cooked with fava, so I’m not sure. Neither will be exactly like the red beans, though. :)
It’s literally in the name of the dish, so no, neither of them will work.
I prepared this using some Knorr Vegetable broth cubes. And I had to substitute a few ingredients with what I had available. I substituted the Celery and Cayenne with a can of Rotel Mild (Diced tomatoes with green chilies, drained of course) and the green onions with a leek. (I tossed the leek in with the veggies to cook)
The result was AWESOME! It is VERY filling and very tasty!
Beth, thank you for the wonderful recipe! I followed it exactly. For my family, we need a little more spice. We tried adding more cayenne but still felt something was missing. We tried a little bit of Paul Prudhomme’s cajun seasoning and it seemed to do the trick. I know this has a lot of salt in it, though, and would prefer another alternative. My plan for the next time I make it is to use a low sodium veg. broth and keep everything the same except to add a Tbsp of the cajun seasoning. It’s a great recipe and one that I will make again and again.
I haven’t made this recipe yet, but a surefire way to add spice without salt is red pepper flake. Also, I have HOT smoked paprika instead of sweet or bittersweet. Adding a little more of that will definitely add spice!
So I made this yesterday for our New Year’s Day dinner. The only change I made was instead of cayenne pepper I put a good pinch of red chili pepper flakes into the mix. This pot of beans was XLNT!!! The rice I made was jasmine with a bit of diced celery and onion cooked in a light broth made with Better Than Bouillon No Chicken base, then sprinkled with the green onions. This is a definite keeper, no doubt about it. Thank you so much for the good eats!!!
I made a few substitutions based on ingredients I had available, but this was absolutely delicious, and is now a part of my regular recipe line-up.
Edit: forgot to rate the recipe. 5 stars!
This may be a ridiculous questions but are these red KIDNEY beans? I guess kidney just describes the shape of the bean… but wanted to be sure because I’ve never heard them referred to as only red beans. Thanks!!
Those are, yes. Here in Louisiana we have another type of bean that is smaller than a kidney bean, but the same red color and they are just referred to as “red beans”. You can use either kidney or “red beans” for this recipe. :)
Is it still vegan if you use onions and green onions?
Yes, vegan means that there are no ingredients from animals. :)
Safe to assume this can go in the crockpot set on low and beans that were not soaked over night?
Red beans are one of the only few that you don’t want to cook in the slow cooker on low. They contain a natural compound that can cause extreme gastric distress if it’s not boiled (heavily) for at least ten minutes. The light simmer that happens with a slow cooker on low might not be enough.
Thanks. I had the same question. Love the website.
Could you boil it for 10 minutes and then transfer it to the slow cooker on low?
Theoretically, that should work. I have not tried it, though.
The broth should be cold or boiling when you add it to the beans?
Any temperature is fine because it will quickly heat up in the pot. :)
A Tip: Use Pressure Cooker to pressure cook the beans for 20-30 mins and then pour into the pot. This way you wont have to spend two hours simmering it. I bought a pressure cooker for about 50 ‘dollah’ years ago and I use it daily for beans and lentils. Thats how Indians make their most of the lentils and beans.
Source: I am Indian
I am trying one of these recipes. You had me at cheap.
Very easy to make and very yummy I froze some ! 8/10
Do you think this would be ok to freeze? The batch is too big for me to finish by myself! I would hate this to go to waste.
Thanks for the great recipe :)
Yes, beans freeze very well. :)
Can this recipe be done using canned red beans? How long would it need to cook?
Yes, just instead of adding the dry beans and 6 cups of broth, add the canned beans (rinsed and drained) plus about two cups of broth. It probably only needs to cook for about 30 minutes. You may need a little extra salt, too, since there is less broth.
It needed salt but was good after that addition. I didn’t have the smoky paprika, so I used regular paprika.
This was awesome. I thought I had the celery but I accidentally used it for a catering gig! So I doubled the amount of carrots and diced em small. Still delicious. It’s lasted us a while too, which is always nice.
Can you use a slow cooker for this? It’s super hot outside and I don’t want to sweat in front of my stove!! Thoughts on a crock pot?
The only problem with using a slow cooker is that they sometimes don’t get hot enough to make the red beans safe to eat. Red beans have a natural compound in them that can cause severe gastric distress and is slightly toxic if they are not boiled hard for a good ten minutes or more. Slow cookers usually just get up to a strong simmer and don’t break down that compound.
I just made this exactly as outlined. I just added a couple of tablespoons of coconut oil for that silky texture. Thanks so much for this recipe. Delicious!
daaang gina! this was so good. My mom has a little bit of a bean phobia (not even kidding) so after I got married and we were too poor to buy much meat we started experimenting with beans as a substitute. We mostly use black beans so I was excited to find a tasty-looking recipe to try with a different kind of bean. My boss lived in Louisiana for school and he told me I couldn’t make this without meat so we added some turkey sausage at the end. I didn’t know what to expect from this at all, and it was so good! Even without the sausage I know this would be bomb. Your blog is by far my favorite and most-used for recipes!
Hahaha, “Dang Gina!” :) Next time try cooking the sausage first and using the sausage grease to cook the onions/bell peppers etc. You’ll have even more flavor! :)
OMG I made this for dinner yesterday! First item made from your blog. It was absolutely delicious!!!!!
Mine ended up SUPER runny so I improvised and just mixed the rice in. Turned it into a soup type thing. Still very yummy! but I’d love to figure out how to make it thicker. It was probably because I used canned beans and didn’t adjust the liquid content…will do it for next time!
AMAZING! I am making this for the 2nd night in a row. Its sooooooo yummy. I could eat this all month
if my family won’t eat green peppers, any suggestions on what to substitute? Can’t wait to make this!
I think I’d just leave them out. :)
Made the recipe today following another commenter’s suggestion. We decided to have this dish too late for the 12 hour soak, so I soaked the beans for about 4 hours, then used a pressure cooker for 40 minutes, then 10 minutes on simmer. As advised, I left out the green peppers. I used “Better than Bouillon” vegetarian base, to make the broth. We added andouille sausage for the meat-eaters in our midst. I do think the smoked paprika was the secret ingredient! THIS DISH WAS A HIT with everyone — which rarely happens. thank you!
sorry forgot to rate this 5 stars!
This has so much going on, they probably won’t notice. just don’t tell them, hehehe.
I made this recipe exactly as is, and it is so, so good. Thank you for sharing this recipe, even the non-vegans in my life love it. I am also applying your coconut oil trick to other dishes and want to thank you for that one too!
I made this last night with a lot of alterations, and it was delicious! Thank you so much for sharing! It’s always nice to have a “base recipe” when I’m not familiar with how to make a certain dish. I always let my creativity run wild, but without this as the basis for it, I would’ve been lost — so thank you! :)
Thanks for the great recipe. My family loves this! Your site has been wonderful:-)
When recipes talk about beans, I’m often confused about which variety is used. Now we should use “red beans”. Are these kidney beans or azuki beans? In the picture of the beans soaking, they have the shape of kidney beans, but not the red colour, so are they some rare variety of bean?
Kidney beans are what you’d want to use. There are light and dark kidney beans, also large and small kidney beans, so that might be why they look different to you. We have a type of red beans here in Louisiana that are simply labeled as “red beans” and not kidney beans, although I suspect they are a variety of kidney. They are not adzuki beans, though.
Yum! Sounds so good!
In the area of substitutions for pork, Linda Watson of “Cook for Good” suggests tahini. I tried it in some pintos I made for a veg friend of mine this weekend and it gave the beans a slightly nutty flavor and a great mouth feel.
Oh how I love this recipe. It’s now a staple in our house. It’s one of the nicest things I’ve ever eaten! I use canned black beans or whatever I have on hand. It does take time to cook down, but by the end of the cooking time it’s a nice stew-like consistency. Also, the first time I made it I had no celery, so I added 1/2 tsp celery seed, not knowing if that would help…it’s amazing with it! I increase the spices to heaping and use a vegetarian stock that’s beef-flavoured.
Thank you so much for all the great meals — I live off this website (and I’m vegan, so that’s a compliment to how adaptable your other recipes are)!
Made this tonight and it was AMAZING!! The smoked paprika really made it taste like the traditional non-vegan version, which my husband meat-eating husband liked. I wouldn’t change a thing about this recipe, it was absolutely perfect! Not to mention it makes enough to feed a small army! Thanks!!! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes, so glad I found your blog via Pinterest :)
First, I tried this with 2-3 carrots last week in place of celery and it was fine in a pinch. :)
Second, the hubs is from NOLA and this is our new fav recipe! Any suggestions to make a vegetarian jambalaya? We are joining a CSA for summer and things like jambalaya and stir fries seem like great options to use up the veggies!
This looks fantastic! Quick question – as an educated guess, how many cans would I use if I only wanted to use canned beans?
Probably about 3, but then you’ll need to adjust the liquid content too, since the beans won’t be absorbing any.
How do you think this would work with red lentils?
I don’t think they would work because of the way they break down as they cook. You’ll probably end up with mush. :)
I made this recipe yesterday as a side dish with some tortilla chips. I used black beans instead of red beans since that is what I had on hand but it was DELICIOUS!
Awesome. I didn’t think to have them with tortilla chips, I bet that is AWESOME.
This was great over some basmati rice. Very filling.
This is a new staple of mine now…so yummy!
Love this recipe! (Should say love the “idea” of this recipe since I haven’t made it yet!) Making the fiance go and grab celery and peppers ASAP while I let the beans soak for tomorrow nights vegan feast. A little late to the Mardi Gras party but this way I can pick up the beads left behind :-)
Hooray! My findings are in. I only had 1/2LB of dry beans, so made a half batch. Beans soaked for 4hrs while I shopped for veggies (and made a large lunch of Spanish rice and vegan taco salad (appetiser, see)). I followed the recipe exactly, dividing in half, but I used 3.5 cups stock, the extra to make up for the shorter soaking time. I brought the beans close to the boil, put the lid on the pressure cooker, leaving the heat on high until the first whistle. Then I immediately turned the heat down to medium low and let the pressure cooker do its thing for exactly 40minutes (my dog hates the pressure cooker and spent the entire time outside sulking). I took the pan off the heat, used the quick pressure release method to get the lid off, mashed a portion with the masher, and simmered on low for about 10 minutes. I didn’t need any salt as the vegetable stock infusion I use is fairly salty. Made my rice while cooking a vegan GF cornbread, and Bob’s yer uncle! It was great!
Need to make this for dinner tonight, but didn’t realise I wanted it ’til just now! Gonna try a 3 hour soak and cook it in the pressure cooker. Will keep track of timings and report back. Hopefully you’ll be able to add a rapido version!
Paul
I’m going to try this very soon. Here’s hoping my CSA box has lots of ingredients I need next week. Thank you for the recipe!
You *can* make kidney beans in a slow cooker, but you should boil them for 10 minutes on the stove first to avoid the tummy issues Beth mentioned. That’s the route I’ll go.
Made ths yesterday for Fat Tuesday. AMAZING!!!!!! My husband even went back for seconds. My 4 year old and 1 year old ate it too. Will be making again!
I cannot find smoked paprika for the life of me. Could I use normal paprika and a little bit of liquid smoke?
Yep! I would have used liquid smoke if I had some, but I didn’t. :)
I made this with my boyfriend tonight and we loved it. Although I loved it too much and now I’m in pain from eating so much!
I made this for dinner last night for my boyfriend and myself. He loved it, but added chicken to it since he is not vegan/vegetarian, I had the recipe as is. I thought it was okay, I do not think I will make it again. I think it needed A LOT of salt to get any sort of taste to it. The bay leaf, didn’t necessarily add a flavor I liked. I thought it was fine, it was a healthy tasting dish, but I like other recipes from your blog a lot better :)
Made this and it turned out great. Only difference was I used chicken broth since I’m not vegan and my beans only had to cook for about an hour until they were soft enough.
I made this for my family and we loved it. Actually we really like 95% of the recipes we have made for your blog. I would like to see the recipes you would come up with for quinoa.
Thank you,
Andrea
Looks great. I looked for red beans all day. I found Kidney and Adzuki. Will either of these work?
Yes, kidney beans are what you want to use (you can use either kidney or “small red beans”. I don’t know how adzuki would work.)
My Rival crockpot always gets whatever is cooking to a mellow boil after a few hours. I’ve owned two and both did/do this. I’ve done white beans and have had no more gastric disturbance than usual, which…might not be saying much.
Kidney beans in particular have more of this substance than other beans, so I’m not comfortable using the slow cooker with them (despite the light simmer that it reaches). It’s risky! :)
Thanks for including a vegan recipe!
HI Beth,
I just picked up your book and can’t wait to get into it. I guess my family will be having at least 5 new recipes this week.
Cheers
Louise
Beautiful! I’m not vegan, but I’m allergic to pork, and for some reason, no stores in my area carry smoked turkey. This sounds like an excellent version…and I can cook up some sausage on the side for my husband.
Hi Beth! I made this for a house full of vegans the other night and they could not get enough! The coconut oil mixed in really hit it out of the park.
My question for you- do you think this recipe could be easily transferred to a slow cooker? I would love to have this cooking during the work day!
Thanks for all that you do!!
Well, I’ve seen slow cooker red beans and rice recipes, but I don’t think I would try it because red beans have this naturally occurring chemical in them that is slightly toxic and causes extreme gastric distress. Boiling the beans for 10 minutes destroys the compound, but heating the beans to just below boiling actually increases its toxicity. SO, many people advise against using a slow cooker to cook red beans because the light simmer that occurs just isn’t enough to destroy that compound. Also, when I’ve cooked beans in the slow cooker they just don’t break down much, even on high, so you wouldn’t get that nice, soft, creamy texture.
Got it, thanks Beth!!
This looks so good. Do you think it can be put in the slow cooker while I am at work, if I sautee the veggies the night before?
I wouldn’t suggest cooking red beans in a slow cooker. They have a naturally occurring chemical that can be toxic and cause GI distress. That compound is destroyed when the beans are boiled for ten minutes, but the toxicity is increased when the beans are heated to just below the boiling point. The heat from a slow cooker usually isn’t enough to destroy the compound… or make the beans break down as much as they do on the stove top. :)
Doesn’t that only apply to kidney beans? I was under the impression that red beans aren’t the same as kidneys, so they didn’t cause that issue. Just curious, I’m really not 100% sure though so I guess better safe than sorry!
“Red beans” can be used to refer to both kidney and small red beans, so I thought it was better safe than sorry. :) I’m not sure if the small red beans are in the same family as kidney beans.
I am normally just a lurker but I literally gasped when I saw this recipe. Cajun style red beans and rice is one of my absolute favorite meals but I have yet to come up with a vegan version that I’m satisfied with but looks to have a lot of elements I look for in a recipe. I will be trying this asap!
Yay!!! I’m so pleased you’re posting VEGAN recipes!!! WOOT! WOOT!
This looks great and love it even more that it’s Vegan. Would love more vegan recipes!
This looks and sounds delicious! What are your thoughts/advice on freezing and reheating this? I’m afraid I’d eat all of it without a plan! Thanks!!
This type of dish is perfect for freezing! :) I like to put the rice and the beans together in individual resealable contaienrs and freeze them like that. That way I can take one portion out at a time and microwave them till hot.
Just made this! Went to the grocery store and started quick soaking the beans as soon as you posted the recipe! I was so excited to try this and it didn’t disappoint. I added some coconut oil at the end and it was amazing!!! I thought I would have to add a little something to get the taste just the way I want, but this recipe was spot on! Would probably be even better when I have the time to actually soak the beans and cook longer
I only have canned red beans right now. What is the best way to adapt this recipe?
First of all you’d have to rinse them VERY well. The liquid they’re canned in is loaded with salt so be careful with the seasoning. You probably wouldn’t have to cook them as long either.
Saute the veggies as usual, rinse the beans, add them to the pot, add a little vegetable broth and the spices, and then let simmer until the beans are soft enough to mash. You’ll definitely need less broth than I used for the dry/soaked beans, but it’s hard to say how much without testing it out or knowing how much beans you’re using.
Thanks for this recipe! I eat a lot of beans and enjoy them. I didn’t realize that the red beans and rice dish was a creamy – partially mashed dish. That puts a whole different spin on it for me!
I soak my beans on the counter but I live in NW Montana and my house is typically very cool as in 62-64F and it is not humid here. I think in LA, I would frig soak as you do.
The coconut oil addition is perfect IMHO :)!
Cheers from MT.
yayyyy for vegan recipes!
It’s like you knew I’ve been eyeballing that classic red beans and rice recipe you posted but wanted a vegetarian/vegan version! I’m making this as soon as I get to the grocery store to grab some celery! :)
I’ve wanted a veg*n red beans and rice recipe for so long and now my favorite food blogger posted one!!! Yay! Would it work to remove the celery straight out, or would I need to replace it with something since it’s 4 stalks?
That’s a tough one because the celery is so integral to the flavor of this dish. It wouldn’t quite be the same without it, yet I can’t think of anything comparable to replace it with. I suppose you could just try more peppers and onions (maybe multi-colored peppers for fun?).
You could try something like jicama or carrots. Both have that sweet-somewhat neutral crisp flavor.
A traditional mirepoix contains carrots, onion, and celery. If you can’t do celery, I’d sub the carrots back in instead. It’d be a cross between the traditional and the caujin.
Since carrots are a bit more dense than celery, I’d personally probably only use 2-3 instead of 4.
Love that you’ve veganized this! I will definitely be filing this recipe away for future use! xo
Not a been expert, but I was under the impression that beans hydrate faster at room temperature.
I would imagine they do. I’ve just always done it in the fridge over night. :)
This looks absolutely delicious. Do you think I could use black beans instead of red beans?
Yep, I think that would be delicious.
Was thinking pinto beans as well. It’s all good, to quote G. Paltrow.
I mimicked the above recipe with black beans instead of red beans…delicious!