Woohoo!
Did the real deal, yesterday. And took me all day, too. I used Chuck
Taggart's recipe from his Gumbo Pages, which I consider THE
Cajun/Creole bible:
http://www.gumbopages.com/food/red-beans.html
Started a 2pm and finished at 8pm. This mainly due to my elevation of
eight thousand feet and cooking the beans naturally. IOW, no
pre-soaking or pressure cooking. That, and they were dried red kidney
beans. Entire cooking time was at a rolling boil. It did confirm my
theory, which is red kidney beans CAN end up with a soft skin if
cooked properly.
The finished beans are to die for. I used Aidell's andouille sausage
and a smoked ham shank, as I had no hocks. Aidell's has it all over
Saag's andouille. I cooked till bean cream was plainly evident and
bean pulp was sufficiently soft. Probably coulda gone another hour or
maybe two, but I was getting tired of waiting. Even Chuck's version
takes 4 hrs at sea level, so six hrs for me is not outta line. Next
time, I'll start earlier, like in the morning!
I can say w/o fear of contradiction, this version is fantastic! Makes
Popey's RB&R taste like what it is, cheap fast food. I ate a whole
bowl last night and was ready for more. Today, I'll even put it over
rice! It's gotta be even better. I now understand why this is a
weekly dish for many NOLA natives. C'est magnifique!
nb
Did the real deal, yesterday. And took me all day, too. I used Chuck
Taggart's recipe from his Gumbo Pages, which I consider THE
Cajun/Creole bible:
http://www.gumbopages.com/food/red-beans.html
Started a 2pm and finished at 8pm. This mainly due to my elevation of
eight thousand feet and cooking the beans naturally. IOW, no
pre-soaking or pressure cooking. That, and they were dried red kidney
beans. Entire cooking time was at a rolling boil. It did confirm my
theory, which is red kidney beans CAN end up with a soft skin if
cooked properly.
The finished beans are to die for. I used Aidell's andouille sausage
and a smoked ham shank, as I had no hocks. Aidell's has it all over
Saag's andouille. I cooked till bean cream was plainly evident and
bean pulp was sufficiently soft. Probably coulda gone another hour or
maybe two, but I was getting tired of waiting. Even Chuck's version
takes 4 hrs at sea level, so six hrs for me is not outta line. Next
time, I'll start earlier, like in the morning!
I can say w/o fear of contradiction, this version is fantastic! Makes
Popey's RB&R taste like what it is, cheap fast food. I ate a whole
bowl last night and was ready for more. Today, I'll even put it over
rice! It's gotta be even better. I now understand why this is a
weekly dish for many NOLA natives. C'est magnifique!
nb