I’ve had a mild obsession with red beans and rice since my first visit to New Orleans ages ago. There’s nothing better than that smoky, savory, soupy stew surrounding a tall mound of fluffy rice. It’s pretty much the ultimate comfort food.

I know I share this belief with countless others around the world: Rice is the absolute ideal partner to any sort of beans. I never understood why my family made fun of me for cooking my own little mini pot of rice to have with chili, but my taste buds were always more than happy to ignore the critics. In this dish, the rice and beans are together by tradition and design, so of course I love it!

Red beans and rice have a great and rich tradition in Louisiana’s Creole cuisine. It’s a dish that involves slow cooking beans and aromatics with, perhaps, a ham bone to impart deep flavor. I don’t present this version as traditional or authentic, but more the result of tinkering to capture at least a bit of the flavor of one of my favorite dishes. It’s a simplified version that references the delicious original, but is much quicker to make and perhaps a bit Bay Area-ified.

I realized after a few iterations, that mouthfeel is really important in this dish. The beans have to be thick, yet soupy. Adding half whole beans and half pureed beans turned out to be the perfect consistency for me. I like a combination of red (kidney) beans and pink (pinto) beans but feel free to follow your preferences.

I have also played with different kinds of protein here, including Portuguese linguica, ham, andouille and even vegetarian soy-based chorizo — and they’re all just fine. As the spirit of this dish is homey and frugal, just use what you have on hand. This is a wonderful recipe, too, for stretching just a little bit of meat, which I love, as well.

Plate this dish by ladling the beans into a shallow bowl, then mounding the rice in the middle. I fill a small metal prep container with rice and invert it, unmolding it to make a neat looking little tower of rice, but you can just spoon some rice into the center. Don’t forget the hot sauce and scallions!

Quick Red Beans and Rice

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 to 2 tablespoons oil

1 green bell pepper, finely chopped

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 ribs celery finely chopped

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

2 bay leaves

½ pound chopped Portuguese linguica (or ham, andouille or crumbled soy chorizo)

2 cups cooked kidney or pinto beans, left whole

2 cups cooked kidney or pinto beans, pureed

2 cups water or stock of your choice

Hot sauce, chopped scallions and steamed rice for serving

Directions

Heat the oil in a medium-large pot. Saute the bell pepper, onion, celery, smoked paprika and bay leaves over medium heat until the vegetables are softened but not browned, 6 to 7 minutes. Season the mixture with salt and pepper and stir the vegetables occasionally to make sure they don’t stick or burn.

Add the chopped linguica (or protein of your choice) and continue to saute over medium heat for another 5 minutes. If a large amount of fat has collected in the pan, you may choose to carefully pour off most of it.

Add the whole and pureed beans and the water or stock. Scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen any stuck-on bits. Simmer, uncovered, until warmed through and until the liquid has reduced to your preferred consistency.

Serve the beans with hot cooked rice and garnish with plenty of hot sauce and chopped scallions.