“New Orleans Food Is As Delicious As The Less Criminal Forms of Sin.” ~ Mark Twain
Let’s Blog Over Red Beans & Rice…
There are two reasons red beans & rice became a Monday tradition.
First, families in 19th-centruy New Orleans would often have ham as a part of their more elaborate Sunday dinners. Red beans & rice was a great way to extend the value of the ham by using the hambone and leftover scraps of ham in the next nights meal.
Second – Monday was customarily laundry day in New Orleans households. Laundry in those days was laborious (not that it’s a walk in the park today, but back then it could be an all-day chore that involved boiling clothes) and doing laundry didn’t get you off the hook for having to put a meal on the table that night. So red beans & rice was an ideal washday dinner mostly because it’s very hands-off. Essentially, you put everything in a pot, set it over a low flame, and walk away for a couple of hours.
Doing laundry on Mondays is a bygone custom in New Orleans, but the red beans & rice tradition remains. Many restaurants serve it as a Monday lunch special, and many families have it at home every Monday night. My household was and is no different. Red Beans & Rice is a meal cooked almost weekly, and a comfort food anyone would love.
If you’re wondering what to cook tonight this would be the perfect meal. The recipe is posted on my instagram. Check it out and let me know what you think!
Red Beans & Ricely Yours,
Ralijah
Thoughts?