I have only had red beans & rice at Popeyes so I have no idea what the real thing is like. I scanned the leftovers
in the fridge & saw rice, dark red kidney beans,& Conecuh Hickory Smoked sausage(grilled).I cut the sausage in
1/2" chunks added Tones Cajun seasoning, cooked onions, & celery stirred it all together. It was great considering
it was thrown together.
I am curious what authentic Red beans & rice taste like now?
I dunno...all I have ever done was Zatarain's mix...although I prefer their Dirty Rice.
I went to a real Cajun-Creole restaurant in a bad neighborhood in Tacoma. SPICY 🥵. I kept getting up to hit the bathroom and blow my nose. The manager came over to ask the lone Caucasian guy, me, if I was ok. I left there with my sinuses feeling cleaned out, but had trouble sleeping that night in a local motel. Part of that was all the pimp, prostitute, pusher noise happening outside. Some things you just have to experience, to know.
" a real Cajun-Creole restaurant in Tacoma" I reserve judgment. This recipe is supposed to be somewhat authentic.
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/58211/authentic-louisiana-red-beans-and-rice/
I used to eat Louisiana Cajun food even I don't know what they call,Red been and rice is much less spicy than other like sausage stuff with rice . I like the soup with all the sea food but never like crawfish
A good gumbo is hard to beat. Cajuns also have a way with fish. I like snapper Pontchartrain a lot, or with a lump crab butter sauce.
If I had to impress someone with a meal cooked from scratch to save my life it would be my gumbo.
I've only made jambalaya a few times. I think red beans and rice is similar
Red beans and rice is a complete diet so you don't really need to eat anything else to survive. It's even more nutritious than beans and tortillas. But I'm a spoiled carnivore and am not satisfied unless a little animal fat and protein is thrown in too. Sausage can be spicy and fatty enough that a just a little bit of it goes a long way.