[Sca-cooks] Black beans and rice sides

[Philippa Alderton]

As it happens, this afternoon, I'm making up some
Black Beans and Rice, with my usual sides, and I was
wondering if anyone might have some suggestions for
alternative sides. Recipes follow ;-)

Black Beans-

1 lb well soaked Beans, simmered gently all day, w/
3 Hickory Smoked ham hocks
Chopped hot peppers to taste
Chopped onion and garlic added after 5-6 hours
Two small cans tomato paste
1 Large can tomatoes

Simmer all gently, so the broken beans absorb the fat
and get velvety smooth- the intact beans add texture,
and the tomatoes add flavor, and make things a deep
mahogany color. One hour before serving, add more
chopped onion, giving two variants of onion flavor in
the same dish- If you serve raw ones on the side, you
get three ;-)Salt isn't really needed- the hocks add
plenty of that for most people.

I usually get the beans mostly done, then refrigerate
overnight, then let simmer for a while next day before
serving- helps blend the flavors, and get that
beans-are-always-better-on-the-second-day flavor ;-)

Rice-

I use the short grain Asian rice which is fairly
sticky, tossed/ blended with butter just before
serving. To serve, make a rice bowl within the bowl
you're serving in, and add the beans- you get a chunk
of rice in every spoon of beans, that way.

Enriched Corn Bread-

Being a bit lazy, and not having much in the way of
facilities and ingredients here, I'm using two boxes
of Martha White corn bread, replacing the milk or
water with a can of creamed corn, and a dollop of sour
cream, and adding a small red and a small green
chopped hot pepper- great flavor and color. Bake until
done in an 8X8 pan.

Salad-

Thinly sliced cukes, onions, and tomatoes dressed in
Balsamic vinegar, and allowed to sit a blend flavors
for an hour or so.

Would love to hear other suggestions, either
alternatives, or additions, keeping in mind that I
don't do bland.....

Phlip

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get personalized email addresses from Yahoo! Mail
http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/