I made this Red Rice (an approximation of my Mom’s recipe) to accompany the last few links of my Dad’s venison sausage. It’s a humble, Cajun-inspired combination and one-pot wonder. I used my trusty cast iron frying pan to cook the bacon that flavored the dish; saute onion, bell pepper and garlic; and finish cooking the tomato-based rice.
The rice starts on the stovetop but finishes baking, covered, in a hot oven. And instead of baking the sausage on a separate pan, I just popped four links atop the tin foil that covered the rice. This pleased our resident dish washer.
To add some green to the meal and counteract the bacon grease, I made a pan of garlicy spinach, as well. And although it would have fed a normal family of four, William ate half of the rice and sausage. I took care of the spinach.
Red Rice
5 strips bacon
1 medium onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano
1 cup long-grain white rice
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce (or 2 tablespoons tomato paste mixed into 3/4 cup water)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons hot sauce
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°.
Heat a large cast iron frying pan on medium heat. Add bacon strips, and cook until crisp. Remove bacon and drain on a paper towel. (There shouldn’t be tons of bacon grease left in the pan, but if you’d like, you can remove all but one tablespoon of the fat).When bacon is cool, break it into 1/4-inch pieces.
Add onion, bell pepper, and bay leaf to the pan, and cook until vegetables are soft, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic and oregano, and cook 2 minutes more.
Stir in rice, and toast for 2 to 3 minutes. Pour in tomatoes, tomato sauce, salt, black pepper and hot sauce. Top top the rice-tomato mixture with crumbled bacon. Cover the pan (tin foil works just fine for the cast iron) and place into the oven. Bake for 30 minutes, until rice is tender.
Serves 4