On Sun, 13 Feb 2011 10:51:46 -0500, "jmcquown" >
wrote:

> I concur there's really nothing special about the dish although I do like
> it. It's a lot of work for beans & rice. And it does have some spice to it
> (unlike one poster said). But I haven't been able to find small red beans
> so I make due with kidney beans. Hey, if they're good enough for Paul
> Prudhomme they're good enough for me. When I make it (rarely) I do look for
> andouille sausage to keep it authentic. It's harder to find now that I'm in
> SC. Tasso is definitely out of the question. Ham hocks... hmmm, I need to
> go to Piggly Wiggly.

Unfortunately, unless we find boutique andouille, we're pretty much
limited to Bruce Adelle's version which lost it's original punch to
sell more product to the masses. It doesn't even look the same.

I thought I'd added more kick to the red beans & rice (and also doused
it with Tabasco after plating), but it was uninteresting. It's not
that I don't eat beans & rice, I make mung beans with rice which I
think has more flavor and I love black eyed peas and rice although for
some reason, I don't make it very often.

I'm not so sure about Tasso either. It seems to me "pickled meat"
would be an acquired taste. Maybe I'd have a different reaction if I
used decent ham hocks from the butcher.

We have a boutique CSA type butcher who is going to be producing
andouille, tasso and honey lemon bacon. We go to a local park to pick
it up. I'm tempted to try his wares, especially the andouille... but
at $10 a pound, I'd better like it.

--

Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground.