Kick A** Red Beans 'n Rice

I recently had a hankerin' for some down-home, to-die-for, simmer-all-day-long, kick-yer-butt beans and rice. I perused cookbooks and settled on a recipe: Salt pork, tomato sauce, crockpot.

Blyech! I ended up with a giant pot of bland beans to serve over over bland rice.

I grumbled about it on Facebook, and it paid off BIG time. My friend Carla is thankfully on good terms with her ex (my friend also), Bruce. Cajun Bruce! Louosiana Bruce! Misplaced-in-the-Midwest Bruce. Makes the best Bloody Mary in the entire-world, and makes his son call you "Mz. [Lori] Bruce.

We really just call him Bruce. Bruce kindly responded:

"If you use the crock pot, soak the beans overnight and next morning put in onion, celery, green pepper, and at least 2 bay leaves (secret ingredient) plus pressed garlic and salt. Let cook all day with plenty of liquid. What you want is everything to break up so that its just a sludge of unidentifiable ingredients. ...add smoked sausage (which adds the taste no matter what kind of sausage you use)

Serve over rice, with cut up shallots/green onions and Louisiana red spicy hot sauce and/or Tony Chachere's cajun seasoning.

I'm not an overly religious person, but this Beans 'n Rice would bring me to the pulpit.
Aw, lawd, this was just what I was after! Hallelujah!!!

I'm not one to give advice, but I were, I'd advise you either to make a big pot of this stuff, or to come over the next time I make it.

C'mon over for beans 'n rice, you.