Reel Repair by Alan Tani

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.

Love red beans and rice!

It was a stable back when I was growing up in Pensacola.

https://www.nolacajun.com/products/camellia-creole-red-bean-seasoning-mix?srsltid=AfmBOootNVmYnwKqoUorP_RWZzjZubv_yLlgj3PaKfwN80-JDWMuHw5y

I'm a cheater. I use Camellia spice mix. You can also get it in a box with the red beans. If the link doesn't work, just google "Camellia Red Beans Seasoning". You can get it at walmart or amazon. When I'm in Louisiana, I always make time for butcher shops and markets (got to have my boudin). Red beans are super easy and they cook much quicker than pintos. I doctor mine with Andouille and green onions.

Quote from: PacRat on July 26, 2026, 09:59:16 PMhttps://www.nolacajun.com/products/camellia-creole-red-bean-seasoning-mix?srsltid=AfmBOootNVmYnwKqoUorP_RWZzjZubv_yLlgj3PaKfwN80-JDWMuHw5y

I'm a cheater. I use Camellia spice mix. You can also get it in a box with the red beans. If the link doesn't work, just google "Camellia Red Beans Seasoning". You can get it at walmart or amazon. When I'm in Louisiana, I always make time for butcher shops and markets (got to have my boudin). Red beans are super easy and they cook much quicker than pintos. I doctor mine with Andouille and green onions.

I love beans and rice dishes.

For folk that aren't used to cooking red kidney beans, they have the most lectin by far of any type of bean, and the lectin can make you pretty sick if you don't cook it out. From:https://enewsletters.k-state.edu/youaskedit/2017/10/13/cooking-dry-beans-safely/

The FDA recommends these steps for preparing dry red kidney beans:

Soak beans for at least five hours in water. Change the water periodically, but it's not necessary for safety.
Drain the beans from the final soaking water.
Boil beans in fresh water for at least 30 minutes. Note: The toxin is destroyed when boiled at 212 degrees F for 10 minutes, but scientists recommend 30 minutes to be certain the beans reach the proper temperature for the amount of time necessary. Don't use a slow cooker: It likely won't get hot enough.

-J

I used to cook up dry beans from scratch but don't like having to start them a day ahead of time.  A good thing about using dry beans is the opportunity to season to taste while they slow cook.

Canned beans are what I usually use but I wash away the can syrup.  I don't know what that stuff is, but if you wash it away, you're left with precooked beans that are pretty much without additives.

For most dishes, I go with pinto beans instead of kidney beans.  Pintos just taste better to me and you don't have kidney bean skins to deal with.

I skip the dry bean process and go for canned dark red kidney beans. Add a little milk, some butter and spread them over bread and bypass the rice. Dice up some onion, add some salt and pepper and enjoy. Every once in awhile I'll brown up some ground beef and add it to the beans while they're cooking. One of my favorite dishes....but my wife doesn't like it, so I make it when I'm on my own. 

Quote from: day0ne on July 24, 2026, 11:15:55 PM" 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/

Location, location, location? Yeah maybe a weird place for one. The owner/manager was cool guy. Interesting accent. My guess is that also the cook(s) and some staff were. A lot of people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds have migrated to the West coast.

Technically. a bean concoction served over rice that was cooked separately is a Gumbo.  If the bean concoction and rice are cooked together then it is a Jambalaya.  The bean concoction usually includes chopped peppers, onion, celery and garlic plus whatever ingredient(s) that makes it special to you.