Black Beans and Rice

I just love black beans, and this is a great way to use the nutritious beans as the "meat" of the dish.  This dish can stand alone or it can be added to something else, like a taco bowl.  I do not use canned beans, I usually buy a bag and cook my own and then freeze them and use them when I need to.  You can adjust the seasonings as you want.  You can use brown rice for more nutrition or you can use white rice for convenience.


Ingredients:

1 Tbls olive oil
1 cup white rice
1 medium onion, diced
1 medium green bell pepper, diced
3 cups of chicken stock or 3 cups of water and 2 teaspoons of chicken stock starter (or bouillon cubes)
2 Tbls tomato paste
1 can black beans (rinsed and drained) or 2 cups of frozen black beans (rinsed and drained)
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Juice of 1/2 lime


Directions:

1.  Heat the oil in a 6 quart saucepot over medium high heat.  Add the rice, onion and pepper and cook and stir for about 2 minutes.

2.  Stir in the broth, tomato pasted, pepper flakes, cumin and chili powder and heat to a boil.  Reduce the heat to low.  Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until rice is tender.  Stir regularly because this can easily stick.  If you use brown rice, increase the cooking time to 35-45 minutes or until rice is tender.  When finished, stir in the beans and ciliantro, mix and cook until the mixture is hot.