Lou Jane Temple - Red Beans and Vice

LOU JANE TEMPLE
ST. MARTINS MINOTAUR NEW YORK

RED BEANS AND VICE . Copyright 2001 by Lou Jane Temple. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information address St. Martins Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.

ISBN 0-312-28013-0
ISBN 978-0-312-28013-0

To Ron Megee,
friend and creative inspiration

Jambalaya

1 whole head garlic, roasted

3 stalks celery, sliced thin

1 large onion, peeled and diced

1 green pepper, seeded, quartered and diced

1 red or yellow pepper, or both, seeded and diced

1 large can Italian tomatoes, smashed up

1 can artichoke hearts, drained and halved

1 qt. chicken stock

1 qt. shrimp stock

1 small can tomato sauce

12-15 cherry tomatoes, halved

cup oregano leaves, chopped

2 sprigs thyme

1 lb. large shrimp

1 lb. Polish sausage or andouille

lb. crabmeat

1 lb. white long grained rice

1 T. Louisiana hot sauce

olive oil

kosher salt

black pepper

white pepper

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. cayenne

1 T. green Tabasco sauce

This is a great party dish that has suffered too much exposure of late. Remember to put the shrimp in last so they dont turn to rubber. My version gets great flavor from the roasted garlic and the two stocks.

To roast the garlic: In a baking dish, put a tablespoon of good olive oil and a sprinkling of kosher salt. Split the head of garlic and place in the pan face down. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or so, until the garlic is soft and browned on the bottom.

To make the shrimp stock: Peel the shrimp and place the shells in a large saucepan. Add the tops and bottom of the celery bunch, some parsley stems, green onion tops, half an onion with the skin on, and a carrot that has been washed but not peeled. If there is any open white wine in the refrigerator, throw some in. Cover this with 2 qts. of cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, occasionally skimming the top of the stock, until you have reduced the liquid by about half. Strain and cool.

In a large, heavy Dutch oven or something like it, heat 4 T. olive oil. Add the trinity: diced onion, celery, and peppers. When they have softened and the onion is translucent, add the rice and toss. Then add the tomatoes and the tomato sauce. Squeeze out the roasted garlic cloves into the pot. Bring up to a simmer for a couple of minutes, then add the chicken stock and herbs. Simmer 20 minutes. Add the cherry tomatoes, artichoke hearts, and sausage. As the liquid cooks away, add the shrimp stock and the seasonings. Taste every once in a while to test the rice. When the rice is just tender, throw in the shrimp and crabmeat. If you need more liquid, add water, chicken stock, or shrimp stock, whatever you have to keep it moist. Cook just long enough for the shrimp to turn pink, adjust seasonings and serve.

One

S o, first they sent women from Paris to be brides of the French settlers, then they sent these nuns to help birth the babies and start schools and stuff. Heaven Lee was pacing around Sals barbershop, waving a hardcover book. Sal was getting ready for his day, setting out his clippers and combs and scissors in a neat, orderly row. Murray Steinblatz, the maitre d at Cafe Heaven, had brought Lamars doughnuts to the barbershop and Heaven had brought coffee from the restaurant across the street. She would only drink Sals coffee under crisis circumstances. The other member of this impromptu coffee klatch was Mona Kirk, the owner of the cat gift store right next to Cafe Heaven. She was the only one who seemed interested in Heavens history lesson.

And that was how long ago?

Really early, as far as American history goes. Seventeen twenty-seven. My friend sent me this history of New Orleans and it tells all about them, the sisters, she said, waving the book again. Can you imagine a bunch of nuns coming across the ocean to God knows where. Heaven was glad to have an audience. New Orleans was just a swamp with a few houses then.

Sal turned his head to face the crowd rather than talk through the mirrors that lined the room as he did when he had a customer. So whats different from right now? That city is still under sea level and still filled with alligators and other slimy two-legged critters, from what I read in the newspaper.

The word newspaper pulled Murray away from the one he was reading, the Kansas City Star. Murray was really a journalist who had dropped out for a while and was working at Cafe Heaven. He used to write for the New York Times and was sending them a column once again entitled Letters From the Interior. Thats right, Sal, Murray said. That city is full of corruption. Once I flew down there for a story when the vice squad had to be disbanded because it was just too corrupt. What a comedy. The bar owners on Bourbon Street complained because the cops would come in and help themselves to the bills in the cash register, just scoop out money and walk away.

It did seem comical but also exciting, and they all chuckled wistfully. Kansas City rarely had scandal anymore, and when it did, it was a more boring, stolid Midwestern variety.

Remind me, Heaven, Sal said. What do these nuns have to do with you going down to ol NOLA?

Nola? Mona Kirk asked peevishly. She was the only one who had been attentively listening and she didnt remember a Nola being a part of the tale. Whos Nola?

Heaven patted Monas leg and knocked some glazed doughnut leavings off her slacks. NOLA is just a nickname for New Orleans, Louisiana. N and O for New Orleans, and LA is the state abbreviation for Louisiana, she said in a slightly condescending manner.

I knew that, Mona said crossly.

The nuns? Sal asked again. Once Sal started tracking on something, he wanted to get it straight.

Heaven looked around the room like an old maid schoolteacher, pursing her lips slightly. Now everybody, pay attention. The history stuff was just to show that Im not leaving you all for some unimportant, trivial pursuit in another city. The nuns, the Sisters of the Holy Trinity, are a very important part of New Orleans history, and my national womens chef group is helping Susan Spicer and Anne Kearney, who are restaurant owners and chefs in New Orleans, were helping them put on a benefit for the sisters because the sisters thing is education and that happens to be important to the womens chef group too. She could see by the way Murrays eyes were glazing over that she was losing them again. And a woman I knew when I was a lawyer, a woman who used to live here but married someone and moved to New Orleans, just happens to be on the committee for this benefit. She called personally and asked me to be one of the chefs and so I couldnt say no to a good cause and an old friend, now could I?