On Beans & Rice & Hats

"As for red beans and rice, well, I don't have to say anything about that. It is my birthmark."

--Louis Armstrong, American Trumpeter

"The way of the wise is to prepare rice by steaming rice grains; the way of the ignorant is to prepare rice by steaming sand."

--Wonhyo, Korean Monk

Beans and rice. If one is not careful, merely thinking about this dish can destroy the causes for future rebirth and shoot one straight into enlightenment. It's that serious.

Rarely have I made the same beans and rice dish twice. Which is probably appropriate, because I suspect that I have never been the same person twice while making it. The latest incarnation, though, involves cutting open a hot Italian sausage (bought from George, my local butcher -- he used to work at the bagel shop, but apparently he's a meat man now), frying it with shallots and garlic, adding some cumin and chili powder, adding some beans (you choose the kind), and then stirring in some rice.

This last part is worth discussing further, though. While using basmati gives the dish a sense of firm separation, lately I have been using a short grain brown rice from Lundberg Family Farms, which was recommended to me in a potent vision. The shorter, plumper grains have a nice snap to them, and are therefore more sensual. Their girth also means more starch, which means more creaminess. Moreover, I appreciate rice growers who wear crisp hats.