Monday, January 28, 2013

Spicy Red Bean Soup Recipe

I've been pretty lazy about going to the grocery store lately. This method of kitchen-maintenance can be a little dicy. Sometimes the recipes are a flop, and we have to debate whether to eat it anyway or to order out for pizza (a costly proposition in a large family!) So far, we have only flopped a few times in our marriage and I'm grateful that the Spicy Red Bean Soup that I threw together became a winner that even had requests the next day!


There are several benefits to this recipe:

  • it's easy, 
  • most of the ingredients can be kept in the pantry, 
  • it freezes well, 
  • it's cheap to make a LOT of it, 
  • it can be made ahead of time in the crock pot, 
  • it's versatile - don't have a can of chili peppers? No trouble, leave them out. Want to throw in some corn? Go for it! Add a can of diced tomatoes and reduce the liquid for a thicker chili. Kids eating too? Reduce the cayenne pepper some.
  • it can be left in the crock pot all day for teenage boys and their friends to grab as a healthy, filling "snack" while they're on the go!
  • it can be made in one pot, meaning less work for Mom!


Ingredients:

1 lb. dried red beans, soaked in vinegar-water the night before (for the slow-cooker, lots o' boys in the house method)
                  or 3 cans cooked (for the "nearly instant", smaller family version, half everything else)
4 boullion cubes
1 can diced green chili peppers
2 onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 large or 2 small green bell peppers, diced
2 Tbsp. chili powder
2 bay leaves
cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to taste
Boatload of ground Cumin (just kidding - not quite a "boatload" but I am a huge fan of cumin so put in as much as you like - or less if you don't care for it so much)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Slow Cooker Method (feeds 8 - 10 people)

1. Sautee the onions, garlic and green pepper in a bit of butter or olive oil until the onions are translucent.
2. Put all of the ingredients into a crock pot. Add 7 cups of water or broth.
3. Turn on the cooker to low heat (if cooking beans from scratch for more than 4 hours) or high heat (if you need it done in less than 4 hours, but you're still using dried beans), cover and let it cook until the beans are cooked through.
4. Serve hot with corn muffins, rice, and a dollop of sour cream or cheese if you like.

Nearly Instant Method (feeds 4 - 6 people)

1. Sautee 1 onion, 2 cloves of garlic and green pepper in a bit of butter or olive oil until the onions are translucent.
2. Rinse beans.
2. Put all of the ingredients into a medium-large soup pot, add 4 cups of water or broth and bring to a boil. Lower heat and cook until the beans are warmed through.
3. Serve hot with corn muffins, rice and a dollop or sour cream or cheese if you like.

Allowing this soup to sit until the next day enhances the flavors and makes for a very robust winter soup. If you decide to try it out, please head back to leave a comment and share your opinion!

Coping With Frugality

2 comments:

  1. We love beans, but I'm not sure I've had red beans before. Will have to try this!
    Thanks for linking up with Delicious Dish Tuesday!! Come back and share more tonight! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Welcome to the Schoolhouse Review Crew! I'm following your blog now. Red beans and rice is one of my favorite meals. Changed up as soup would be delicious on a cold night.

    ReplyDelete

I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

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