View Full Version : Cajun Rice and Black Beans - Recipe
Dicentra
06-19-2009, 13:16
This one isn't mine. It is from a food preservation yahoo group I am on... It is actually written for at-home use, but it looked like a great idea for backpacking, so I thought I'd share. :sun
Cajun Rice and Black Beans
Jumping with flavor and color, this rice and bean dish is sure to spice
up your meal.
1/3 cup dried cooked long grain brown rice
1/4 cup dried cooked black beans
2 Tbsp finely chopped dried tomatoes
1 Tbsp dried onion pieces
1 Tbsp dried celery slices
1 Tbsp dried green bell pepper pieces
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp crumbled dried thyme
1/4 tsp paprika
pinch cayenne pepper (or to taste)
To serve:
1 1/3 cups water
In a sealable plastic bag or container, combine rice, beans, tomatoes,
onions, celery, peppers, salt, thyme, paprika and cayenne. Seal and
store at room temperature for up to a month for best freshness.
To serve: In a saucepan or skillet, bring water to a boil. Add rice
mixture, remove from heat, cover and let stand for 15 minutes or until
rice is softened.
Uncover and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often. Boil,
stirring often for about 5 minutes or until mixture is hot and liquid is
absorbed.
Serves: 1
Hikes in Rain
06-19-2009, 16:23
Oh, man, that looks good enough to eat! Needs some andue (sp?) sausage to make it complete, but this looks wonderful. Thank you for posting it; do you have any hints for dehydrating the ingredients? I don't have much experience there.
Jim Adams
06-19-2009, 16:41
I've been making a similar dish for years on my canoe trips up north. Dehydrating all of these ingredients isn't hard and if you want to add more flavor and some meat, use about a 6" piece of pepperoni. Slice it into slices about 1/4" to 3/8" wide and then cut those into quarters like little pieces of pie. Just cook them in with the mix. Very tasty!
geek
LaurieAnn
06-19-2009, 16:44
Hikes in the Rain - the information for drying the vegetables can be found in this PDF file...
http://www.nesco.com/files/pdf/dehydrator_cookbook__digest_.pdf
Rice you cook as you normally would, being careful not to overcook it. Then spread it on lined dehydrator trays and let dry until there is no more moisture. With my model that works out to anywhere from 5 to 8 hours.
Black Beans you can dry two ways. You can cook dried beans and then dry them (I know it sounds weird but the dried beans you buy in the store take overnight soaking and/or cooking to bring them to the right texture). Or you can use canned beans just rinse them first. Dry until they are dry all the way through... about 7 to 10 hours.
LaurieAnn
06-19-2009, 16:47
Here is another recipe that uses black beans. I make the whole dish and then dry it. I find that much easier than just drying mere ingredients.
Black Bean, Corn and Sweet Potato Soup
courtesy of Wilderness Cooking
Dehydration Time: 7–12 hours
Makes 6 large servings
1 teaspoon cumin seed, toasted
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 red or white onion, minced
1 1/4 cups sweet potatoes, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon ancho chili powder, optional
1/2 teaspoon Kosher or coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 can diced tomatoes, 28 oz
2 to 3 cups vegetable stock
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cilantro
1 cup frozen corn
2 cans black beans, 14 oz each, rinsed and drained (or the equivalent amount of cooked beans)
2 tablespoons sour cream, optional
At Home: Toast the cumin seeds in a dry nonstick frying pan until they become fragrant, about 3 minutes. Set aside. Heat the olive oil in a large pot. Add the onion and sauté until soft and translucent. Add the sweet potatoes and cook until the mixture starts to brown slightly. Then add the garlic, cumin seed, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper. Stir in the lime juice, tomatoes and enough vegetable stock to cover the mixture. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 10 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Add the coriander, cilantro, corn and black beans and more vegetable stock if necessary. Continue to heat on medium-low for 5 minutes or until heated through. Add the sour cream if you are using it. Measure the soup and write this measurement on a sticky note. Spread the soup on dehydrator trays that have been lined with fruit roll inserts or plastic wrap and dry for 7 to 12 hours or until no moisture remains. Put the soup and the sticky note in a ziplock freezer bag.
At Camp: Add enough boiling water to the dried soup in a pot to equal the measurement on your sticky note. Be sure to account for and add your dried ingredients to the rehydration container prior to adding the water. You can always add more water if you need to. Once the soup has rehydrated, heat it through if necessary.
© 2008 Laurie Ann March
Oh, man, that looks good enough to eat! Needs some andue (sp?) sausage to make it complete, but this looks wonderful. Thank you for posting it; do you have any hints for dehydrating the ingredients? I don't have much experience there.
andouille... ann (like the girl's name)-due (as in owed)-ee (as in the 5th letter of the alphabet)...
but any cajun would know what you meant, and all that matters is that it gets into the pot, regardless of how you say it... :D
LaurieAnn
06-19-2009, 19:35
great... now I'm craving gumbo! :p
Hikes in Rain
06-20-2009, 08:17
Thanks, LauriAnn, that's exactly what I was looking for. I have a dehydrator (love garage sales!), but haven't put it to much use yet. Sometime Real Soon Now :rolleyes: I'm going to take the section hike I had to postpone last month, and I'd like to improve the food since it's a longish walk. This will certainly be on the menu.
Andouille. Yep, I can say it, I certainly eat it! But I can spell any given word at least three different ways, and that word seriously lets my creative side loose. I have a Cajun who works with me, and he says I'm an honorary one.
And this dish just cries out for it.
LaurieAnn
06-20-2009, 09:32
You're welcome.
A little off the topic of backcountry food... but I am going to try my hand at making my own andouille this fall. It's really hard to find up here and I'm quite curious to see if it is something I can recreate.
You gave me an idea - this soup would be really good with some sausage too... might have to try that.
Hikes in Rain
06-20-2009, 09:59
Hmmm...I also have an old hand cranked meat grinder. We can get analogs of andouille here, but it doesn't quite taste the same as the stuff we occasionally bring back from Louisiana. I wonder.....
Too bad we're on opposite ends of the continent!
Dicentra
06-20-2009, 10:10
Oh, man, that looks good enough to eat! Needs some andue (sp?) sausage to make it complete, but this looks wonderful. Thank you for posting it; do you have any hints for dehydrating the ingredients? I don't have much experience there.
You can either do your own (I have pages on how to dehydrate on my site) or you can order from Packit Gourmet (http://www.packitgourmet.com/), Harmony House Foods (http://www.harmonyhousefoods.com/) or JustTomatoes (http://www.justtomatoes.com/) (also found in some stores). You can also find black bean soup mix in bulk bins. Fantastic Foods carries a black bean dip/spread that would work as well.
Or... You can re-write the recipe so that you don't need to run the dehydrator at all. Like this:
Cajun Rice and Black Beans
Jumping with flavor and color, this rice and bean dish is sure to spice
up your meal.
1/3 cup instant brown rice
1/4 cup dried cooked black beans (soup mix - bulk bins or Fantastic Foods)
2 Tbsp finely chopped dried tomatoes (Just Tomatoes or sundried tomatoes)
1 T dried bell peppers (Just Tomatoes)
1 Tbsp onion flakes
1/4 tsp celery salt
1/4 tsp crumbled dried thyme
1/4 tsp paprika
pinch cayenne pepper (or to taste)
Cooked andouille sausage (optional)
Combine all the ingredients in a zip locking plastic bag. Pack sausage seperately.
To serve: add water to cover. Stir. Let stand for 5 minutes until rehydrated. (I'd use a freezer bag cozy -ala Sarbar) Dice sausage and stir in. Serve hot.
This isn't quite the sausage called for, it is freaky good though!
http://www.packitgourmet.com/Kountry-Boys-Pork--Beef-Sausage-with-Jalapeo-p205.html
Dicentra
06-20-2009, 10:30
This isn't quite the sausage called for, it is freaky good though!
http://www.packitgourmet.com/Kountry-Boys-Pork--Beef-Sausage-with-Jalapeo-p205.html
They carry a couple of different types of chorizo that would be excellent in that dish too!
LaurieAnn
06-20-2009, 10:32
Hmmm...I also have an old hand cranked meat grinder. We can get analogs of andouille here, but it doesn't quite taste the same as the stuff we occasionally bring back from Louisiana. I wonder.....
Too bad we're on opposite ends of the continent!
I have a Kitchen-Aid stand mixer and will probably order the attachments for making sausage.
A friend of mine is a chef, apprenticed in NOLA, and he is going to share his personal recipe with me. I'll ask him if he'd mind if I passed it along to you (I'm sure he won't - but I like to ask first - professional courtesy and all).
great... now I'm craving gumbo! :p
gitcha sum... http://www.cajungrocer.com/
LaurieAnn
06-20-2009, 12:09
I like to make my own. :) Then again, I find creating different foods a fun thing to do. My father-in-law was sweet enough to bring me a load of File from his trip to New Orleans.
Hikes in Rain
06-20-2009, 15:56
I agree! Homemade is best. I love to cook. I grind my own flour from wheat, oats, or rye to make our bread; roast and grind coffee. I make beer and mead. (My strong golden Belgian won third place in a national homebrew contest, so I can legitimately say I make third rate beer)
That's why I love threads like this. It's a big deal for me to be able to hike the Trail; just the trip up is nine hours now. So I intend to make the most of the trip, which is why threads like this are fascinating to me. Food should be a celebration, and where better than on the AT.
Geez, I even over-intensified myself!!
LaurieAnn
06-20-2009, 19:10
I'd love to learn about making my own flour. I do make bean flour but I've never done the grains. We'll have to chat about that sometime. Bryan would love it if I knew how to make beer but the flour thing interests me more. Eventually he's going to build me a brick oven in the backyard so that will be when I start to experiment more.
Oh goodness, you sound like me. I just can't wait until 2011 when I can make it down to the AT. It's going to be great!
Or... You can re-write the recipe so that you don't need to run the dehydrator at all. Like this:
Cajun Rice and Black Beans
Jumping with flavor and color, this rice and bean dish is sure to spice
up your meal.
1/3 cup instant brown rice
1/4 cup dried cooked black beans (soup mix - bulk bins or Fantastic Foods)
2 Tbsp finely chopped dried tomatoes (Just Tomatoes or sundried tomatoes)
1 T dried bell peppers (Just Tomatoes)
1 Tbsp onion flakes
1/4 tsp celery salt
1/4 tsp crumbled dried thyme
1/4 tsp paprika
pinch cayenne pepper (or to taste)
Cooked andouille sausage (optional)
Combine all the ingredients in a zip locking plastic bag. Pack sausage seperately.
To serve: add water to cover. Stir. Let stand for 5 minutes until rehydrated. (I'd use a freezer bag cozy -ala Sarbar) Dice sausage and stir in. Serve hot.
You know....I had plenty-o miles to think today while hiking on the white flanks of Tahoma about upcoming meals for both Go Blue and also T&T's thru hike. I am thinking I will get some more TVP sausage from Packit and do a test run of this recipe. It might work! (OK, not for GoBlue....not enough time. Dang!)
Anyhow, YOINKS! :D Thanks fer the idea, Missy! Missed ya out on the trail today. You missed a scary dude with the biggest white boy dreads ever.
They carry a couple of different types of chorizo that would be excellent in that dish too!
That would be nice as well. Just as long as it isn't like the chorizo Trailhead ate last summer :eek: Eek!
Di, I figured you would like this shot of T&T's meals from one drop shipment:
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a308/NWHikergirl/Blog%20Food/tntmeal.jpg
Totally unrelated to this thread, sue me :D
bullseye
06-20-2009, 22:58
You can either do your own (I have pages on how to dehydrate on my site) or you can order from Packit Gourmet (http://www.packitgourmet.com/),
Thanks Dicentra, I didn't know about this one. Great looking meals!
Dicentra
06-20-2009, 23:41
That would be nice as well. Just as long as it isn't like the chorizo Trailhead ate last summer :eek: Eek!
Remember the sliced chorizo I reviewed awhile back? I was referring to that. Spicy, but not stinky. Looks like Packit doesn't have it right now though. Bummer. It was yummy!
http://www.onepanwonders.com/Chorizo.jpg
Oh cool, that stuff was nice looking!
Btw, the sausages Packit sells are the thin ones, perfect for dicing up. They include a 4 pack in the gumbo meal they sell. It is very tasty!
Dicentra
06-20-2009, 23:46
Oh cool, that stuff was nice looking!
Btw, the sausages Packit sells are the thin ones, perfect for dicing up. They include a 4 pack in the gumbo meal they sell. It is very tasty!
I just bought a couple of those wine infused salamis from World Market. I'm good on trail meats for now... Prolly gonna end up eating them for lunch they are so good!
Nearly Normal
06-21-2009, 01:53
I like to make my own. :) Then again, I find creating different foods a fun thing to do. My father-in-law was sweet enough to bring me a load of File from his trip to New Orleans.
File' (feelay) doesn't keep very long. Make your own.
Young sassafras leaves are dried and powdered.
Hikes in Rain
06-21-2009, 07:48
I'd love to learn about making my own flour. I do make bean flour but I've never done the grains. We'll have to chat about that sometime. Bryan would love it if I knew how to make beer but the flour thing interests me more. Eventually he's going to build me a brick oven in the backyard so that will be when I start to experiment more.
Oh goodness, you sound like me. I just can't wait until 2011 when I can make it down to the AT. It's going to be great!
Grinding wheat is pretty simple with an electric grinder. I use a Whispermill (http://www.grainmaster.com.au/) which is reputed to be the quietest mill on the market. If that's really true, I'd hate to hear the loudest! Darned thing sounds like a jet engine winding up. I have a little scar on my left arm where one of the cats was "helping" when I first turned it on. Neither of us was expecting that kind of racket! It does make huge mounds of really fine-graded wheat flour really fast, though. I can grind enough for one loaf in around 20 seconds. There's a bunch of others out there, too, and they're all pretty good.
I also have a cast-iron hand-cranked grinder. It was cheap, and it worked, but whenever I used it, a certain Biblical passage keeps running through my mind. Something about "earning thy bread by the sweat of thy brow." Using that thing in Florida, in July, in a west-facing garage in the afternoon brought a lot of sweat to my manly brow!! These days, I just use it to crack grains for beer or cereal.
Getting wheat was harder. It's not a Florida crop. Corn was pretty easy to find; we grow a lot here and in Georgia. I searched out feed stores, which often had wheat as horse feed. Same wheat, just not cleaned. I had to pick stones, stalks and weed seeds out of it. That was a royal pain. Finally hooked up the the Latter Day Saints here, and they let me add to their orders when they have "grain runs" from Montana. That's much better; the grains are triple cleaned, and seem to be higher quality as well. They make two or three runs a year, so get 100 pounds or so at a time. Now, I just need a silo.....:D
Up where you are, you could probably get wheat directly from the farmers. That'd be sweet! I like grinding my own. You know how much better homemade bread is than store-bought? Using fresh ground flour is that much better again. It's tough to eat commercial bread now.
Fair warning...making beer can quickly become an obsession.
May I reserve your mail drop services now?
Thanks.
Di, I figured you would like this shot of T&T's meals from one drop shipment:
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a308/NWHikergirl/Blog%20Food/tntmeal.jpg
Totally unrelated to this thread, sue me :D
mister krabs
06-21-2009, 08:26
If you're going to make andouille, make it like the best. The wayne jacob's way. It is the best, bar none.
http://forums.egullet.org/uploads/1117396065/gallery_2_0_109155.jpg
http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=68633
Hikes in Rain
06-21-2009, 08:35
Now that's what I'm talkin' about! Great link, mister krabs, thanks! Now, I need to build that smokehouse......
mister krabs
06-21-2009, 08:49
I think one of the keys of what they do is the huge die they put on the grinder. It must have at least half inch size opening, that is what creates the great texture and makes it look so good when you slice it. That and the lack of preservatives and the utter simplicity of the ingredients.
I make a trip out there every time I go to NOLA, about twice a year. Their cracklins fresh out of the pot are spectacular.
Dicentra
06-21-2009, 10:31
May I reserve your mail drop services now?
Thanks.
You know if you ever did a thru you'd have sponsorship. Just sayin... ;)
Or if Spindle makes it out this way :D
Dicentra
06-21-2009, 11:44
Or if Spindle makes it out this way :D
We'll feed her good! She has my book, so she could make special requests ahead of time...
LaurieAnn
06-21-2009, 11:46
I think one of the keys of what they do is the huge die they put on the grinder. It must have at least half inch size opening, that is what creates the great texture and makes it look so good when you slice it. That and the lack of preservatives and the utter simplicity of the ingredients.
The info about the die is good to know about. It's something I wouldn't have thought of.
I have both of your books, will be seeing y'all next year, and will let you know about my AT thru attempt within a year of deciding on a start date.
I suspect I'll be one of the few hikers who gains a little weight.:D
Special needs, I haz them. Thanks. :sun
We'll feed her good! She has my book, so she could make special requests ahead of time...
Hey, which forum is this anyway??? Seeing an awful lot of familiar folks from someplace else. :D
Speaking of thru's...I was talking with Rainy on their PCT thru right now. She was commenting that their food (this is T&T I am referring to!) is at least half the size of most everyone else they have seen - and half the weight :)
My instructions were keep it small, light and high in nutrients. Fun indeed and with a super long shelf life/ease of preparation. Been awesome...so Spindle, you know Di and I would be all over ya!
Dicentra
06-21-2009, 14:50
I have both of your books, will be seeing y'all next year, and will let you know about my AT thru attempt within a year of deciding on a start date.
I suspect I'll be one of the few hikers who gains a little weight.:D
Special needs, I haz them. Thanks. :sun
Special needs. Check. No problemo. One of the thrus I sponsored (with 60 dinners - OMG) this year was special needs extremo! He's eating good right now. :D
Hi! We should go hiking. :D
Hey, which forum is this anyway??? Seeing an awful lot of familiar folks from someplace else. :D
You knows what I need. Pack me for hiking not car-camping. :p
Small, light, calorie dense, and tired hiker-girl speed prep. Faster from hot water to face the better.
How many days worth are they carrying on average? Do you know?
Speaking of thru's...I was talking with Rainy on their PCT thru right now. She was commenting that their food (this is T&T I am referring to!) is at least half the size of most everyone else they have seen - and half the weight :)
My instructions were keep it small, light and high in nutrients. Fun indeed and with a super long shelf life/ease of preparation. Been awesome...so Spindle, you know Di and I would be all over ya!
Dicentra
06-21-2009, 15:27
You knows what I need. Pack me for hiking not car-camping. :p
Small, light, calorie dense, and tired hiker-girl speed prep. Faster from hot water to face the better.
How many days worth are they carrying on average? Do you know?
For Monty, he had a weight/volume requirement... I ended up creating a whole bunch of new recipes to fit into his will/won't eat requests (he's uber picky!) I don't think either he or T&T are going more than 4-7 days between resupplies.
Just created a new fbc pasta that includes BACON, btw. Stay tuned... :)
How many days worth are they carrying on average? Do you know?
About 4 to 5 at most. This section they left this morning is 10 days. They are doing what takes most 14 days in 10 - and not walking out for a resupply.
They are to 30+ mile days already. :eek::eek:
Hey Spindle, you need some of this?
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a308/NWHikergirl/mikesfood.jpg
Tease. :p
All that for next weeks overnight? You spoil me. :D
Hey Spindle, you need some of this?
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a308/NWHikergirl/mikesfood.jpg
Hehheh...wait till you see Dicentra's photos! She has been cranking the meals out like crazy as well.
Lucky GoBlueHiker, eh?
Dicentra
06-22-2009, 21:48
Hehheh...wait till you see Dicentra's photos! She has been cranking the meals out like crazy as well.
Lucky GoBlueHiker, eh?
You rang dear? I'm only about 1/2 done with my portion... Dehydrator is running some more now...
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3609/3651787289_682b8fe63d.jpg
Dicentra
06-22-2009, 21:50
And Spindle? That one, right there in the middle?
It has BACON.
Dicentra
06-22-2009, 22:00
And 39 more dinners (out of a total of 60) that I sent to Monty. Woot. Hiker food. To give you an idea, that is a DVD player box.
http://www.onepanwonders.com/Hiker%20Food.jpg