Cooked Red Beans, Creole Style
Print This Recipe

---

INGREDIENTS 1 pound dried red beans 1 ham bone or ham hock 8 to 10 cups water 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce 2 teaspoons garlic salt ¼ teaspoon Tabasco sauce 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce ½ pound ham, diced ½ pound hot sausage, sliced ½ pound smoked sausage, sliced ½ cup chopped celery 1 cup chopped onion 3 garlic cloves, pressed 2 bay leaves Salt and pepper, to taste ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley 2 cups cooked rice Wash and sort the beans. Cover the beans with water and boil for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and let the beans soak for at least 1 hour. Add the salt and flavorings after soaking. (Salt has a tendency to toughen the beans which causes them to take longer to cook.) If order to prevent the beans from boiling over, add 1 tablespoon bacon grease or butter, a piece of slab bacon, or seasoning ham with some fat on it. In a large pot place the ham bone or ham hock, water, tomato sauce, garlic salt, Tabasco sauce, Worcestershire sauce and beans. Cook, uncovered, over low heat. In a skillet saute´ the ham and sausage until the grease is rendered. Transfer the ham and sausage to the bean pot. To the grease in the skillet add the celery, onion, and garlic and saute´ until soft. Pour this mixture into the bean pot. Add the bay leaves, salt and pepper and continue cooking for 2 to 2½ hours, or until beans are soft and creamy. Add the water while cooking, if necessary. Remove and discard bay leaves and add the parsley. Serve the beans over rice. Makes 6 to 8 servings