Vegan MoFo VII - Almost Zatarain's Red Beans and Rice

A few weeks ago, I needed a potluck dish but had almost no money to buy ingredients for one.  I had red beans, and I had rice, so I decided to make red beans and rice.  I didn't really use a recipe - I basically just started throwing stuff in a pan.  It was a combination of guessing what should be in beans and rice with some of the spices from the Red Beans and Quinoa recipe from Cookin' Crunk (and since I can't eat quinoa, I'm calling that recipe made).

This was also my dinner for that night, so when it was done, I served it up.  It tasted remarkably similar to the delicious, MSG-laden delight that is Zatarain's Red Beans and Rice.  And since that stuff is about £3 a box here, I'm sure my concoction was significantly cheaper (especially since I got about 6 meals out of it outside of it being eaten at the potluck).  So I present to you now:

Almost Zatarain's Red Beans and Rice

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Ingredients:

3 tbsp olive oil

¼ c shallots, diced

1 tbsp garlic, minced

1 roasted red pepper, diced

1 tsp mixed herbs

½ tsp salt

½ tsp file powder

½ tsp celery salt

freshly ground black pepper

2 c rice

4 c water

2 bay leaves

1 bouillon cube (I used Kallo tomato and herb)

2-3 c cooked red beans (preferably homemade), with some liquid

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large pot.  Add the shallots, garlic and red pepper and sauté until the garlic and shallots are just beginning to brown.  Add the herbs and spices and stir to combine.  Add the rice, water, bay leaves and bouillon cube.  Bring the rice to a boil, then reduce heat to low and cook for about 15 minutes (depending on your type of rice – you may need a bit more time).  Add the beans and a bit of bean liquid and continue cooking until the beans are heated through and the rice is tender.