Beans and Rice

[SquirrellyMama]

Does anyone actually eat beans and rice without putting cheese, sour cream and other condiments on it? I love it with all the above mentioned stuff but it takes away from the health and frugality of the dish. What can I add to it that makes it taste good and still be cheap and healthy?

 

Kelly

[Truscifi]

Yes! I cook the beans with yummy seasonings, and add hot sauce or salsa to the bowl before I eat. Sometimes I add the other stuff too, but not always.

 

Perhaps you could start by just adding cheese ot sour cream, but not both, and work your way down from there. You know, give your taste buds a chance to get used to it.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

Yes. There are lots of different spices and things you can add to make them tasty without cheese or sour cream.

 

I liked to add onions and garlic to most bean/rice combos, and then depending on what type of beans, I'll add stuff like chili powder, cilantro, peppers, cajun seasonings, olives, etc.

[Amira]

I make a couple of different versions of red rice and green rice and serve them with homemade refried beans or black beans. We never put cheese on, but most of us like it with plain homemade yogurt. We use homemade salsa too if the tomatoes are fresh and cheap.

 

I think one the of biggest things for me is using a flavorful rice recipe. That often requires some vegetables, so I don't know if that is an option.

[PeacefulChaos]

Seasoning

[SquirrellyMama]

I do put spices on it already and onions, garlic, etc... I also add salsa and/or hot sauce. I guess I still don't like it without the cheese and sour cream. I can start adding greek yogurt instead of sour cream. I do like that switch.

 

Maybe I'm not putting on the right amount of spices. Or maybe I need to go away from spices that make me think of sour cream and hot sauce.

 

Thanks,

 

Kelly

[SonshineLearner]

I love pinto beans with butter :) That's how I grew up eating it... Pintos and butter!! ;) Also, I love Pintos with ...you guess it... butter and fried potatoes. My uncle just cuts them up in stubby 1 inch pieces... or so. Just enough to make sure that they're crispy. I think you could toss with oil, make only one layer on a cookie sheet.... and crisp up in the oven, too. :) YUM!! :) He's from Arkansas :) It's healthy, right? :)

[FaithManor]

Instead of cooking mine in plain water, I use enchilada sauce, cilantro, and lime so I have a zesty, Spanish rice when I'm done. Very, very tasty.

 

Faith

[Leonor]

Actually, yes.

 

Spanish cuisine, as in from Spain, is more like Italian cooking.

 

You use spices such as garlic, onions, oregano, cumin; green or red bell peppers (not hot peppers of any kind); olive oil and tomato sauce. These are your basic staples.

 

It does not involve any kind of hot sauce or hot peppers. It is not hot or spicy but rather flavorful.

[Dynamite5]

Does anyone actually eat beans and rice without putting cheese, sour cream and other condiments on it? I love it with all the above mentioned stuff but it takes away from the health and frugality of the dish. What can I add to it that makes it taste good and still be cheap and healthy?

 

Kelly

 

Since you already use spices and salsa for flavor, try adding avocado. It will give you the creaminess you may miss when you don't use cheese and sour cream.

[Mommy Grommy]

I like beans and rice with cilantro and lime, and maybe a little bit of sour cream.

[SquirrellyMama]

Cilantro and lime sound great. I would love to have tomato sauce in it but my dh doesn't like cooked tomato. He isn't a bean eater anyway so maybe I'll just make it how I want it. I already have cilantro in it maybe I'll add some lime juice now and see how that tastes.

 

The enchilada sauce sounds very good also.

 

Kelly

[Truscifi]

I do put spices on it already and onions, garlic, etc... I also add salsa and/or hot sauce. I guess I still don't like it without the cheese and sour cream. I can start adding greek yogurt instead of sour cream. I do like that switch.

 

Maybe I'm not putting on the right amount of spices. Or maybe I need to go away from spices that make me think of sour cream and hot sauce.

 

Thanks,

 

Kelly

 

You could try an Italian style white bean dish - I like white beans with tomatoes, onion, garlic, basil, and oregano. Sometimes I add a bit of ham too. It is good by itself or with rice, or even a small pasta. I don't think it would be good with sour cream or cheese added. :tongue_smilie:

[SquirrellyMama]

The lime was an excellent addition. Thanks! Kelly

[Leonor]

Actually, referring back to my post.

 

It depends on which beans you cook what you add.

 

If you made black beans and white rice.

The black beans would include olive oil, spices, green pepper, bay leaf, -- no tomato sauce. Some add cilantro.

The red kidney beans are cooked with basic staples and chorizo or ham--some add potatoes, some add pumpkin.

[SquirrellyMama]

Actually, referring back to my post.

 

It depends on which beans you cook what you add.

 

If you made black beans and white rice.

The black beans would include olive oil, spices, green pepper, bay leaf, -- no tomato sauce. Some add cilantro.

The red kidney beans are cooked with basic staples and chorizo or ham--some add potatoes, some add pumpkin.

 

When do you add the olive oil? That sounds good. The chorizo and beans sound really good. Not sure that would be very frugal though. I may try it anyway. My dh wants to be cheap with food but it makes me sad to do that.

 

Kelly

[stripe]

Yes. I rarely add cheese or dairy products to beans. Onions, garlic, and spices, yes, and usually tomatoes and sometimes peppers.

[SKL]

Yes, when my kids were little I used to buy it in a can at the crunchy food store. I am not a cook, so I don't know what they put in it, but it was quite tasty. (They had multiple combinations of brown rice and beans.) Tasty, healthy, and convenient - that's my kind of food.

 

Maybe it would help to go find some in a store and see how they make it.

[Joker]

We only use homemade pico and avacado here. I just dice up equal amounts of jalapenos, tomatoes, onions, and cilantro, then mix with sea salt and lime juice. We each usually also add a few pieces of avacado.

[SquirrellyMama]

Thank you everyone. I'll give these ideas a try. I like to come here for recipes because they are usually easy and don't use ingredients I haven't heard of.

 

Thanks again! Kelly

[coffeegal]

I enjoy cajun seasoning on red beans and rice. Dh and the children put tabasco sauce on theirs. :001_smile:

[Leonor]

When do you add the olive oil? That sounds good. The chorizo and beans sound really good. Not sure that would be very frugal though. I may try it anyway. My dh wants to be cheap with food but it makes me sad to do that.

 

Kelly

 

The original way that my grandmother used to cook would be that they saute the garlic and onions in the olive oil and then add that to the beans in water and other spices. Forget that, no time for that.

 

Just add everything to the beans at once. Put the beans in water and add the olive oil and all spices, peppers, etc., and cook.

 

They used cooking wine, some add a bit of vinegar and sugar. This all makes it more flavorful but the sugar makes it less healthy. I don't use any of these.

Sometimes I add a little vinegar depending on my mood.

 

I'll try to post some kind of recipe later.

[lexi]

Yes, but we have a dairy allergy so cheese is NOT an option.

 

We add seasonings and sometimes various veggies. Sometimes my kids use chips to dip theirs out. And sometimes we add seasoned meat. It's actually one of my go-to meals because my kids will always eat it. I just vary the spices or veggies each time so it's a little different.

[jallison25]

we do an onion, green peppers (or any color that is cheap), sometimes a can of corn and a can of diced tomatoes. You can buy frozed peppers for pretty cheap here, so none of those additions will be expensive. Also, if you have any kind of leftover ham bits add those!

[Parrothead]

Salt, garlic, onions, bell peppers, celery, basil or marjoram all add great flavor to beans and rice or both.

[JumpyTheFrog]

Add a few tablespoons of coconut oil, a whole head of chopped garlic, and enough salt. Optional ingredients include hot pepper, chili powder, onions, frozen mixed vegetables, cilantro, and lime juice. You can also try cooking the rice in homemade chicken stock instead of water.

[Jenny in Florida]

Does anyone actually eat beans and rice without putting cheese, sour cream and other condiments on it? I love it with all the above mentioned stuff but it takes away from the health and frugality of the dish. What can I add to it that makes it taste good and still be cheap and healthy?

 

Well, I don't eat either sour cream or cheese (vegan).

 

I love black beans cooked with onions and salsa over rice and topped with chopped bell peppers and/or tomatoes.

[Suzanne M]

At least 5 times a week, usually more LOL. However, we live in Costa Rica where the norm is 21 times a week :)

 

 

We've got so we actually enjoy it. :) We do put homemade sour cream on it often (which here in Costa Rica is literally just the soured cream from the cows milk the day before)

 

And it's always well seasoned.. but yep.. we eat it alot :)

[Laura Corin]

Lots of spices. I like it with a fresh steamed green veg.

 

Laura

[KungFuPanda]

I like red beans and rice :-) I cheat and get Zatarains.

[Ohdanigirl]

Does anyone actually eat beans and rice without putting cheese, sour cream and other condiments on it? I love it with all the above mentioned stuff but it takes away from the health and frugality of the dish. What can I add to it that makes it taste good and still be cheap and healthy?

 

Kelly

 

We eat beans at least five days a week, and I never add those things.

 

I usually just cook beans in water, and add salt. You can boil with an onion as well. Even when I mash beans, I try not to do the refried method. If you want spice you can mash then add bean broth from the original pot and toss in some chiles, then simmer.

 

If you like garlic, you can heat a small amount of olive oil, toss in a little garlic and saute, then throw in some whole cooked beans with a little of the broth, and simmer. This goes great on top of plain rice.

 

Black beans cook well with epazote, if you can find it.

 

If you want to refry (less healthy). You can add whole chile de arbol to the oil, or sliced jalapeños before and toast, then add the beans. You can remove the chiles beforehand, if you want. You can also fry without these things, or in bacon grease, or with a little chorizo.

 

You can eat Frijoles de la olla, and add diced jalapeños, onion, and cilantro. This is pretty healthy and tasty. I even seen people oil the whole pot with slice jalapeños, and it was pretty tasty.

 

The only cheese we ever put on beans are Mexican types, and sparingly. Fresco, cotija, or panela. I never heard of putting sour cream, is this a new thing?

 

Danielle

[joannqn]

I cook pinto beans with onion and three slices of bacon (for 3 pounds of beans) and then salt it at the end of cooking. We serve that over rice.

 

Then because any meal without animal protein leaves me starving, I add seasoned chicken. I know not cheap, right? But I only use 2 chicken breasts for 6 people, and I usually cut them out of a whole chicken and use the rest of the chicken for another meal and stock to freeze. I season the chicken with salt, pepper, chipolte chili powder, Cholula hot sauce, and Tabenaro hot sauce.

 

We top all of that with homemade guacamole and salsa.

[LibraryLover]

Sure. Beans and rice are very good in all sort of ways. For the record, plain yogurt served with Mexican beans and rice seasonings tastes exactly like sour cream to me. Although, I don't see what's wrong with a little good sour cream or a bit of good cheese. Maybe using a little less would make you feel better.

 

I don't have a concern about cooking with a reasonable amount of fats, as long as the fats are real, and are not from Monsatan concoctions. I think over -consumption of sugar in sodas and yogurts, and other places sugar not ought to be, and the insane amount Monsanto GM corn carbs in almost all packaged foods is the health issue. A bit a pure sour cream is not the real problem.

 

Are the French worried about their baguettes and brie and creme fraiche? The Italians their olive oil? The Swiss their pure chocolate? The Greeks their goat cheeses? :)

Edited June 28, 2012 by LibraryLover

[helena]

I would garnish with a finely sliced cabbage/cilantro/red onion/lime mixture. It's cheap, and makes the meal fresh.

 

Gallo Pinto is fantastic. You can make big batches and it tastes better every time you re-cook it. http://www.food.com/recipe/gallo-pinto-costa-rican-rice-and-beans-78747.

 

No cheese or sour cream needed (and still super cheap!) :001_smile:

[Soror]

Some we eat at different times. We've been dairy for for years and just added some in, so as it is now sometimes we do some cheese w/ certain dishes but often not.

 

Veg chili

Cajun Pintos

Mexican Black Beans

Refried Beans

Curried Lentils

Honey Lentils