Rice Boston Would Have Banned

      I like "dirty rice."  A kind of cajun pilaf, it's got rice and vegetables and meat -- and seasoning.

      Monday, Tam was working, so I used up the last of the ground beef I had frozen making my own version -- I sauteed half an onion, some carrots and celery, then set it aside while I god the ground beef with cajun spices, a little chorizo seasoning and some extra smoked paprika for luck. 

      With the beef cooked and drained, I added the vegetables back in, plus a small can of green chilies, a can of gandules -- green pigeon peas - and a microwaved bag of "Carolina Beans and Rice," consisting of blackeyed peas, rice and some spices.  Stirred it up, let it simmer and there (with a dash of soy sauce and a dash of Worcestershire) was my supper.

      Supper and a half, or maybe two-and-a-half.  I froze the leftovers for later.

      Tuesday was later.  I sauteed the rest of the onion, a little carrot, celery, a huge Hatch chili and half of a green bell pepper.  I had a couple of hot Italian sausages and not quite a pound of sweet (mild) Italian sausage; cooked and drained, it's not quite as much as you'd think.  Added the thawed leftovers and a small can of corn, looked it over and added a small can of tomato sauce.  It pretty much filled my Always pan, a big, deep, non-stick skillet that is just right for this kind of thing.  I let it simmer with fresh basil and a couple of bay leaves before announcing dinner was ready.

      Tam made her bowl of the stuff vanish in record time.  Not a whole lot of rice in the final mix, but plenty of flavor!  It's not really anyone's regional cuisine, more of a vaguely-Southern* mix of "what works with rice," and it certainly did work out fine.
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* Except for the celery, probably.