Du Jour: Seeing Red

After Maggie Heyn Richardson’s Spatula Diaries post on red beans last week, readers weighed in on their own red bean secrets. We were most intrigued by two, which coincidentally offered insights into creating healthier versions. Slow Food Baton Rouge board member Paige Heurtin has been a vegetarian for 12 years and says she’s found a way to pump flavor into her red beans by using “lots of garlic, onions and green bell peppers cooked slowly in olive oil until they are slightly caramelized and sweet.” Paige continues by saying, “I always add Worchestershire sauce, and have recently experimented with adding fresh or roasted jalapenos, which add heat and a Tex-Mex element.” Heurtin says her carnivorous husband Fred Heurtin, also a Slow Food Baton Rouge board member and a corporate chef for John Folse and Co., approves. Meanwhile, Patrick Fellows, fitness expert and founder and owner of the eatery and food truck Fresh, says his personal recipe includes onion, red bell pepper, garlic, bay leaves, chicken sausage sautéed in olive oil and fresh cilantro, which he adds at the end of the cooking process. Fellows also has a secret ingredient that brings it all together. What is it? “A capful of liquid crab boil.”