Beans and Rice in a Big Pot

Today's recipe, beans and rice in a big pot! Easy and cheap, meatless and absolutely chock-full of power foods. One recipe makes a huge amount of very filling food. This is one of my go-to recipes for the beginning of the week; I like to make it on a Sunday night and pack it up into single-serving containers to use as lunches all through the week. If you leave just an inch of room at the top of your container when you pack it, you can add a dollop of plain greek yogurt, a sprinkle of cheese and some extra salsa before you put it in the lunch bag in the morning.

A note about the beans: I started out by using all canned beans because it's really easy. Draining, rinsing, and tossing in beans is about as easy as it gets. But using dried beans is actually super-easy as well, especially if you use your crockpot. Just put in two pounds of dried beans, fill with water so the beans are covered by two inches, and cook on low for six hours or overnight. I don't even bother soaking. If you eat beans a lot, your body gets totally used to the fiber and gas isn't much of an issue. My preferred method is to cook all my beans, one after another, and scoop them into plastic Ziploc baggies to freeze. I have a large crockpot, so when I want to make beans and rice, six baggies of frozen beans go back in the crockpot for a couple hours on warm to reheat perfectly with no scorching.

Beans and Rice in a Big Pot
(the "everything in cans" version)

2 cans dark red kidney beans
2 cans black beans
1 can garbanzo beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn
1 jar salsa (I like a mild citrusy salsa with no chunks)
2 dry cups brown rice, cooked
Salsa, plain greek yogurt, reduced fat cheese to garnish

Cook brown rice according to package directions, ideally in rice cooker. When rice is nearly ready, drain, rinse and combine all cans of beans in a large dutch oven or small stockpot. Drain tomatoes and add to pot, simmer all over medium heat until warm. Add corn, no need to thaw. Add cooked rice and salsa, stir all very well, let simmer until heated through. Makes 10 servings, 7pts each.

Beans and Rice in a Big Pot
(the "extra-beany" remix)

This recipe assumes you have made and frozen your beans ahead of time like I talked about above. A "bag" is a sandwich-sized Ziploc-style bag, it holds 2-2.5 cups.

2 bags frozen kidney beans
2 bags frozen pinto beans
1 bag frozen black beans
1 bag frozen garbanzo beans
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 cups frozen corn
1 jar salsa (add another half jar if you like more spice)
2 dry cups brown rice
Salsa, plain greek yogurt and reduced fat cheese for garnish

Peel the beans out of their bags and thaw them. If you have a big crockpot, a couple hours on low is the easiest way, otherwise microwave or stovetop. Cook the rice according to package directions, ideally in a rice cooker. When beans are thawed, put them in a stockpot (you WILL need a big pot for this, a dutch oven probably won't cut it.) Drain and add tomatoes, corn and salsa, heat until simmering. Add cooked rice, stir well, cook till heated through. Makes 14 servings, 6pts each

Here are the results of my most recent bean-and-rice adventure. All those containers on the bottom shelf, including the yogurt container, are beans and rice to be used this week. I like to put about a serving and a half in each of the smaller containers because my husband has very long days at work. It's also nice to toss a few whole-wheat tortillas in with the beans and rice for variety.