Tuesday night I cooked the best beans and rice ever.

I’m sure it’s the best because I grew the beans, picked the beans, dried the beans, and finally cooked them.  Do you know how many fresh beans it takes to make a cup of dried beans? Now I do.

I didn’t use a recipe (I rarely do) but here’s what I can recall:

1 cup dried beans (homegrown kentucky wonder and dragon tongue make it BEST)

2 bay leaves

2 red peppers, diced

1 white onion, diced

2 gloves garlic, minced

1 cup brown long grain rice

1 4 oz can diced green chilis

8 oz veggie stock (homemade made it BEST)

1 tsp old bay seasoning

1 tsp soy sauce

1/4 cup tomato paste (home canned made it BEST)

Cook dry beans with 3 cups water and bay leaves in pressure cooker for 25 minutes.

Cook peppers, onion, and garlic in a large pot with olive oil over medium high heat until softened.

Add rice to pot and stir to coat.  Add beans (discard bay leaves), veggie stock, 2 cups water, chilis, soy sauce, and old bay.

After 1 hour, check seasonings.  Add tomato paste.  Continue cooking until rice is tender, adding more water as necessary.  Correct seasonings again if needed and serve.

Have you ever worked so hard in the creation of something that the final product is elevated beyond usual expectations?

I added this recipe to the Food Renegade Fight Back Friday blog carnival.