Jamaican Rice & Peas (Beans)

With every change of season, I send out a jar of spice to all my past real estate clients. This is a recipe for a side dish that was included with the Jamaican Jerk Spice that I sent out in June 2014. It was originally developed by Bobby Flay, but being the type of person that just can't leave a good thing alone, I had to tweak it to make it better. I hope you enjoy it.

Jamaican Rice and Peas

Yield: 4 servings
Total cooking time: about 1 1/2 hours



Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups dried red kidney beans, soaked overnight and drained
• Approximately 1 1/2-2 cups water.
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 Teaspoons grated ginger
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced, plus more for garnish
• 1 Scotch bonnet pepper, chopped (add another if you like a little more heat)
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 1/2 cups long grain rice
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:

Place beans, garlic and ginger in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water (about 1 1/2 cups). Bring to a simmer and cook until the beans are tender, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. When the beans are tender, stir in the coconut milk, green onions, Scotch bonnet, and thyme, and increase the heat to a boil. Stir in the rice, add some salt and pepper, cover the pot, reduce heat to low, and cook until the rice is tender and has absorbed most of the liquid (adding more water if necessary), stirring occasionally to keep the rice from sticking on the bottom of the pan. Transfer to a large serving bowl, taste for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper if needed, and garnish with sliced green onions.

- Jim Armstrong

I welcome your feedback.