Mrs. Robinson’s Red Rice

Shrimp. Sausage. Bacon. Have I got your attention yet? And now add Michelle Obama to that mix and whew!! You’ve got the makings for a dish that is sure to make folks swoon. Our Forever First Lady shares one of her cherished family recipes, her mama’s Red Rice. We talked about her childhood on the South Side of Chicago, about her Dad’s tradition or making apple pie, and she described one of her Mother’s specialities— a family recipe for red rice that reaches back to her family roots in South Carolina. .

Serving Size (4-6)

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice

• 1 chopped white onion (small)

• 1 1/2 cup tomato juice

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon pepper

• 1 dash of tabasco

• 1 cup crumbled bacon (save drippings)

• 4 tablespoon bacon drippings

• 1 lb chopped shrimp

• 1 lb hot breakfast sausage roll

The Steps

1. Cook bacon and set aside drippings.

2. Cook shrimp, set aside. (You can steam or sauté shrimp)

3. Cook sausage until really crumbled and crispy, drain grease, set aside. 

4. Chop onion and sauté in bacon drippings, set aside.

5. In a large saucepan (4.5 quart or larger with lid) add uncooked rice, tomato juice, salt, pepper, and tabasco.

6. Cook rice, tomato juice, salt, pepper, and tabasco per the packaging instructions.

7. When rice is cooked, add in cooked shrimp, crumbled bacon, and crumbled sausage.

8. Mix well. Enjoy

MICHELE’S KITCHEN NOTES

For my red rice — I sautéed the shrimp in the same pan with the sausage. I used tomato puree mixed with water to thin it out because I did not have tomato juice handy. I also did not have tabasco so I used Cholula hot sauce and it gave it a great flavor. I found that I needed extra water to make sure the rice did not stick to the bottom of the pan. The acid in the tomato juice helps with that.

It was a real bell ringer!