Va Vite Cajun Red Beans And Rice Recipe, Quick And Easy 

Va Vite means "go quickly" in Cajun French, a fitting name for these Red Beans and Rice made in the Instant Pot or on the stovetop. You make them quickly, and they go quickly from the pot onto the plate and into the belly. Yum!

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Red beans and rice are still a Monday night meal in New Orleans today. It comes from the tradition that Monday morning was wash day, and a pot of dried red beans with Sunday's leftover ham bone was put on the stove to cook. Without needing much attention, it simmered for a long time as they busily washed the dirty clothes from last week.

For more New Orleans-inspired dishes, check out 25 Mardi Gras Food Recipes. This collection features a mix of traditional and non-traditional Cajun and Creole dishes, suitable not just for Mardi Gras season, but for any time of year.

Instant Pot Smothered Cabbage, An Easy Southern Recipe, is another Instant Pot side dish. The combination of the Cajun vegetable trinity, Cajun seasonings, and pressure cooking creates a delicious cabbage dish with a rich, flavorful taste. And also in this Easy Instant Pot Vegetable Soup with Mushrooms and Potatoes, too.

For more help in the kitchen with easy preparation, consider using this Creole Seasoning Blend Recipe With Fresh Vegetables in place of the traditional Cajun trinity, which is often used in this beans and rice dish.

Jump to:

• Cajun Or Creole?
• Ingredients
• Top Tip
• Storage
• Substitutions
• Variations
• FAQ
• RELATED
• PAIRING
• 📖 Recipe
• Comments

Cajun Or Creole?

It's always surprising to people when I tell them I didn't grow up eating these famous red beans and rice. Now, I have a ready answer about my deprived upbringing. Red beans and rice are authentic Louisiana Creole cuisine (deemed city food) and not Cajun cuisine (considered country food). That makes sense to me. I never considered the dish, nor did I prepare it for my family when my children were still at home.

I have since been introduced to several ways of preparing it, and I've discovered how easy, nutritious, and delicious those tender beans in a rich sauce can be. Especially since they're served over a mound of white rice. My favorite time to cook is after a busy day, when I'm hungry for a hearty meal that's quick to get on the table.

Ingredients

While most recipes call for dried beans, I use canned beans for quick preparation. Va Vite (pronounced vah-veet) means go quickly. It's a good description of how these beans are cooked and how they leave the pot.

• Dark red kidney beans - rinsed and drained
• All-purpose flour - to thicken the sauce.
• Extra-virgin olive oil - sauté it with the vegetables before browning the meat.
• Onion - chopped finely, is the main flavor of the Cajun trinity, and it goes well with the bell pepper and celery.
• Green bell pepper - the second member of the trinity of vegetables.
• Celery - the third member of the tasty vegetable trio.
• Garlic cloves - pressed or chopped fine and added to the trinity of vegetables in the last few minutes of sautéing; garlic tends to burn quickly.
• Breakfast sausage - for a tasty, meaty addition to the dish.
• Smoked sausage or smoky andouille sausage - sliced ¼ inch thick and browned to extract that extra flavor.
• Chicken stock - no salt (use ¼ cup more for stovetop cooking); it has more flavor than chicken broth.
• Cajun seasoning - a mixture of salt, cayenne pepper, and other seasonings that gives that unmistakable Cajun flavor to food.
• Bay leaves - dried bay leaves slowly release flavor as they cook with the beans.
• Thyme leaves - fresh ones tied with a cotton string or dried thyme leaves sprinkled in.
• Hot sauce - is always served at the table as an optional ingredient to splash on before eating for all Cajun dishes.

Refer to the recipe card below for specific ingredient amounts and their corresponding nutrition facts.

INSTRUCTIONS

Begin by opening the cans of beans, emptying their contents into a colander over the sink, rinsing, and then draining. Be careful not to crush the tender beans.

Instant Pot Cooking

• After the beans are cooked, allow the valve to release pressure or manually release it slowly according to the directions. 
• Remove the bay leaf and thyme from the pot of beans. 
• Serve over cooked white or brown rice.

Hint: Turn off the Instant Pot if it becomes too hot while sautéing vegetables or browning sausage. Turn it back on to finish the sauteing or browning process if necessary.

Stovetop Cooking

Use ¼ cup more chicken stock for stovetop cooking than when cooking in the Instant Pot.

• Rinse and drain beans.
• Whisk the flour into the chicken stock and set aside.
• In a large pot, stir frequently and sauté onions, green pepper, and celery in olive oil for 5 minutes. Add garlic to cook in the last few minutes. Do not brown.
• Add breakfast sausage, stirring until it starts to brown, then add the sliced smoked sausage. Stirring occasionally.
• After the smoked sausage is lightly browned, add the chicken stock, seasoning, bay leaves, and thyme, stirring to combine.
• Stir in the beans and simmer for 30 minutes on medium to low heat.
• Remove the bay leaf and thyme, and serve over cooked rice with a side dish of sweet cornbread and a dash of hot pepper sauce, if desired.

Top Tip

Tie the fresh thyme leaves together with a cotton string for easy removal after the beans are cooked.

Storage

After the beans are cooled, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can also freeze them for up to 3 months. Defrost and warm in the microwave or on the stovetop, then serve.

Substitutions

• Smoked turkey sausage and turkey breakfast sausage can be used as substitutes for regular smoked sausage and breakfast sausage.
• Any color of bell pepper is acceptable to bring more color to the dish.
• Salt and black pepper can serve as a substitute for Cajun seasoning, offering a less spicy flavor.

Variations

• Add cooked rice to the red beans and sauce, and mix together instead of serving separately for easier serving.
• Omit the meat altogether for a meatless meal.

FAQ

RELATED

Looking for other recipes like this Red Beans and Rice? Try these:

PAIRING

These are my favorite dishes to serve with red beans and rice:

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"We can be tired, weary and emotionally distraught, but after spending time alone with God, we find that He injects into our bodies energy, power and strength."
― Charles Stanley