Red Beans and Rice

Recipe from Pableaux Johnson

Adapted by Kim Severson

Updated January 14, 2026

  • Craig Lee for The New York Times
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
2½ hours, plus at least 4 hours’ soaking
Rating
5(5,326)
Comments
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Every Monday, you can find a pot of red beans and rice cooking in someone’s kitchen in New Orleans. The food writer and New Orleans bon vivant Pableaux Johnson, who died in 2025, was no exception. He often invited an ever-changing band of writers, musicians and other outcasts to sit at the long table in his house, where he put out his version of red beans and rice, cooked with local hand-made andouille sausage. The dish, an easy meal from when people used to reserve Monday to do the wash, was once made with the pork bone left over from Sunday supper. Louisiana andouille works best here, but smoked sausage will do. —Kim Severson

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Ingredients

Yield:About 12 cups

  • 1 ½ pound dried red beans (preferably New Orleans Camellia brand)

  • 1 pound andouille sausage, sliced ½-inch thick (smoked sausage can also be used)

  • 4 tablespoons olive oil

  • 6 garlic cloves, minced

  • 2 medium onions, finely diced

  • 1 large rib celery, finely diced

  • 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped

  • 1 ½ teaspoons black pepper

  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper

  • 2 teaspoons salt

  • 3 bay leaves

  • 2 teaspoons dried basil

  • ¾ teaspoon rubbed sage

  • 1 cup chopped fresh parsley

  • 1 bunch fresh green onions, chopped

  • Cooked white long-grain rice, for serving

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving

56 grams carbs; 5 milligrams cholesterol; 364 calories; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 8 grams fat; 9 grams fiber; 345 milligrams sodium; 19 grams protein; 3 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a large bowl, cover beans in water and soak for at least 4 hours or overnight. (Water should cover beans by at least an inch.)

  2. Step 2

    In a large, heavy pot, brown sausage in 1 tablespoon of oil until slightly crisp. Add remaining oil, then the garlic and onions. Sauté over medium heat until onions become transparent and limp. Add celery and bell pepper and sauté for 5 minutes.

  3. Step 3

    Pour soaked beans and water into the pot and bring to a simmer. Add black pepper, cayenne, salt and all herbs except parsley.

  4. Step 4

    Cook until beans are softened, about 1 ½ to 2 hours. Taste and adjust seasonings.

  5. Step 5

    Fifteen minutes before serving, remove 1 cup of beans to a bowl and, using a fork, mash them and stir back into the pot to enhance the creamy texture of the dish. Add parsley and green onions. Simmer about 15 minutes, taste and adjust seasoning, and add up to 1 cup more water if beans seem too thick. Remove bay leaves. Serve over white long-grain rice.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
5,326 user ratings
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Comments

Alexander

Folks, you need to trust me here on this. We are native New Orleanians and my wife makes the best red beans you will ever eat! She learned at the heels of her family who owned a neighborhood restaurant. Soak the beans for 10 minutes, bring to a boil for 20 min, take off the heat and let them sit til ready to cook. When it's time, bring back to a simmer and then add onions, celery, etc. Mash those beans towards the end for creaminess and if you are brave, add a little butter. YUM!

Steve

I agree with Tim. Been making variations of red beans all my adult life. (Nor from Louisiana, but close, Beaumont Texas.) It's almost impossible to go wrong in my view, if you actually enjoy traditional rb&r. Being from Texas, I add chopped fresh jalapeño and Fresno chiles and twice the garlic. Also serve with Louisiana hot sauce on the side. And Alexander is dead on as to how to cook the beans.....

Brooks Twilley

INSTANT POT (ELECTRIC PRESSURE COOKER) ADAPTATION: Rinse beans, set aside (no soak required). Follow directions above using the SAUTE mode to process the sausage and vegetables. Add beans, seasonings and 7 cups of water. Set MANUAL pressure to HIGH, for 55 minutes, followed by a 10-15 minute natural release. Remove lid, add parsley and green onions, mashing some beans against side of pot. Simmer on SAUTE for 15 minutes, or until desired thickness.

KD

Catherine, I know your comment about a recipe for vegetarian Andouille sausage was posted 8 years ago, but wanted to thank you for giving me the idea to look for one. I had smoked tofu on hand, so Gemini suggested a recipe that had ingredients already in my pantry. It worked, and was a big improvement over adding more smoked paprika and smoked salt as I've done before. Thanks again!

Pam Perkins

Ok I’ve read this recipe three times. No mention of when you add the sausage. At what point do you add the sausage mixture to the beans?

a couple problems with this recipe.

I think the recipe leaves a few gaps. Should I be stirring during the 1.5 to 2 hr cook? Should the pot be covered? When soaking the beans it says to leave 1" of gap between the top of the beans and water level. Is that before or after the beans expand from being soaked in water? I am near the end of my cook and the beans are too crispy.

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Credits

Adapted from Pableaux Johnson

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