Thursday, July 28, 2011

Slow Cooker Black Beans and Rice

“Without rice, even the cleverest housewife cannot cook”

For those of you who know my husband (Shale) and I, you probably know that both of us have a passion for those who are non-Christians and/or struggling with extreme poverty.  We both have friends in India that are missionaries and we get updates weekly on some of the extreme situations there.  In fact one of my friends recently told me there are more orphaned and abandoned children on the streets of Bombai, India than there are people in the city of Tampa.  That means approximately more than 340,000 children on the streets of one city.  I can only imagine what that is like.  I tell you all this to share with you an idea that we recently came up with.  He was talking about how the people of India mainly eat rice and beans every day (cheap) and how we could also do that one night a week so that we might be able to have a little more money in our budget to share with those in need. It was a great idea and to be honest you can easily make a pot of rice and beans to feed 6 people that doesn't cost you any more than $5 total.  Plus if you use brown rice it is a healthy, protein and whole grain meal.  So my goal is to try out different rice and bean recipes each week which I will also share with you along with a quick update from some friends in India on their different needs.  I know there is such extreme poverty over there they could definitely use our prayers and thoughts, since we have all been so blessed in the US.  So here's the first recipe it is a super simple black bean and rice recipe that is delicious!


Slow Cooker Black Beans and Rice
Servings: 8-10+ 
Cook Time: 9 hours (in slow cooker)
Ingredients:
For Black Beans:
1/2 bag of black beans
1 small can of rotel
2 garlic cloves (minced)
1 onion (minced)
1 small piece of chicken sausage (optional)
1/2 tbsp cumin
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/4 cup white vinegar
3 dashes of hot sauce
For Rice:
2 cups of rice
4 cups chicken broth (or water)

At night time:
rinse black beans and pick out rocks/foreign material
place in slow cooker with can of rotel, 2 garlic cloves (minced), 1 onion (minced), 1 small piece of chicken sausage (optional), 1/2 tbsp cumin, 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, 1/4 cup white vinegar, and 3 dashes of hot sauce.
Add enough water to cover twice as much as in pot (beans will expand)
Cook overnight or ~ 6 hours on high
Drain off beans (tomatoes, garlic, onion, etc...) (saving juice)
Pour bean mixture (without juice) into crockpot, add 2 cups of rice, 4 cups of chicken broth and 1 cup of bean juice.
Cook on high for 3 hours or until rice is tender

I made this on a Sunday afternoon (when I have the most time) and we ate it throughout this week.  I had NO clue it would make this much so we were a little overwhelmed with the sheer amount of rice and beans.  However, I have to admit it was the perfect ratio of rice to beans so I would suggest cutting back on everything and not just rice (if you cut it in half).  I think next week I may try and brave the world of curry rice and beans.  I'm completely intimidated by Indian food (as I don't understand curry at all) so this is a HUGE step for me.  Don't expect a recipe because if it's a total flop I may be too embarrassed to post ;-)  Have a wonderful rest of your week!


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