RED BEAN SOUP

A-Z Soups

We love red beans and rice and not just on Mondays. Red bean soup is just as good.

Starting a meal with soup is a good thing, one advantage being that eating soup can quiet down cravings for a huge amount of food. With red bean soup however, you might have to control your cravings for more red bean soup. Yes, it’s that good.

Adapted from http://www.nolacuisine.com/2005/12/22/red-bean-soup-recipe/

Red Bean Soup

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp Creole seasoning Here

1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped celery

1 Cup Andouille sausage, or other smoked sausage such as kielbasa, thinly sliced
1/2 lb small red kidney beans (soaked overnight or quick soaked)
1 cup finely diced ham
1 tablespoons minced garlic
10 cups chicken stock (or water or half stock, half water)
3 bay leaves
1/2 Cup tomato sauce
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, chopped finely
1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced on the bias
Hot Sauce to taste, such as Tabasco sauce
Worcestershire sauce to taste

Method:

Drain the overnight soaked beans. Or to quick soak: cover the beans with plenty of water in a saucepan and bring to boiling. Shut the flame off, cover and let the beans soak one hour.

Mix together the holy trinity (onions, celery, and bell pepper).

Melt the butter over medium heat in a Dutch oven.
Add 3/4 of the holy trinity and just 1 Tbsp of the Creole Seasoning.

Turn the heat to medium high and cook this for about 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the vegetables start to get some color.

Add the drained beans and cook, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes, or until the liquid from the vegetables is absorbed.

Add the chicken stock or water, diced ham, Andouille, garlic, bay leaves, the remaining trinity and Creole seasoning. Bring this to a boil, and then reduce the heat to a simmer.

Let this simmer for 2- 2 1/2 hours.

After the beans have cooked for two hours, add the Tomato Sauce, Parsley, Hot Sauce, Worcestershire, and 1/2 of the Green Onions.

Cook the beans for another half hour. Puree 1/3 of the soup, being very careful to avoid any pieces of Andouille, and bay leaves.

As is the case with most soups, if you make this a day ahead, the flavors will be immensely better. Add additional stock or water if necessary, it should not be too thick.

To serve, remove the bay leaves. You can garnish with 2 hard boiled eggs, chopped and the lemon slices.
 

Here is a fine soup of humble origins. Red bean soup is deservedly delicious.