Red Beans and brown rice with collard greens

I love to eat rice and my tummy really seems to feel satiated with it. However nutrionally, white rice is mere carbs as a lot of vitamins and dietary minerals are lost in the process of dehusking and polishing of rice. So the key here is to go brown!
In this recipe we are going to combine brown rice with red beans and collard greens. Red beans and rice is a staple in the state of  Louisiana in the US.Typically this recipe is served over rice but I chose to toss the rice with the gravy. You may use any variety of red beans available locally. Also if you can’t find collard greens substitute it with spinach or any other local greens. For my desi version (Indian version) of red beans  click here: Rajma/ Kidney beans

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Ingredients:

• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 green pepper ( capsicum) chopped
• 2 stalks celery sliced thinly
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups cooked red beans / kidney beans with atleast 2 tablespoons liquid
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• salt to taste
• 2 cups sliced collard greens
• cooked brown rice
• hot sauce for garnish
• water

Method:
Sauté onion, bell pepper and celery over medium heat until onion is caramelized.
Stir in the garlic and sauté for a minute more.
Next add the bay leaf, red beans with liquid, pepper, thyme and salt.
Add about 1/4 cup water to create enough sauce and simmer it for atleast 10 minutes. The longer you let it simmer the better it gets.
You can replace little more water as it evaporates.
While the sauce is simmering steam the collard greens in another pot or you can microwave them.
Combine the collard greens with the finished bean sauce.
Serve over rice and top with hot sauce or stir it alongwith rice as I did.
We relished ours with blue corn chips!

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