Vegan red beans and rice, made in just 25 minutes, using simple ingredients. This plant-based version is healthier, so nutritious and extremely delicious.
I didn’t know this recipe until I saw it on Pinterest and it was love at first sight. Beans + rice = epic vegan recipe, because rice is one of my favorite foods and beans are a great source of plant-based protein and are also delicious.
For those or you who doesn’t know red beans and rice, it’s an emblematic dish of Louisiana Creole cuisine, traditionally made with red or kidney beans, veggies, spices and pork, cooked together slowly in a pot and served over rice.
We’ve omitted the pork and haven’t used any meat alternative instead because it’s also delicious just using veggies, spices and beans, but feel free to add vegan sausages, tempeh, tofu or whatever you have on hand.
The authentic recipe is made with dried beans, but we find more convenient using canned red or kidney beans. Besides, this way the recipe is made in just 25 minutes!
looking for more bean recipes?
- Simple vegan jambalaya
- Pasta e fagioli (pasta and beans)
- Vegan refried beans
- Vegan baked beans
- Black bean burgers
did you make this vegan red beans and rice recipe?
Please leave a comment below, share it, rate it or tag a picture @simpleveganblog on Instagram and hashtag it #simpleveganblog. We’d love to see what you cook!
Vegan Red Beans and Rice
- Prep: 10 mins
- Cook: 15 mins
- Total: 25 mins
- 2 1x
- Main Dish
- Vegan, American
Servings 2 1x
Vegan red beans and rice, made in just 25 minutes, using simple ingredients. This plant-based version is healthier, so nutritious and extremely delicious.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup uncooked rice (100 g), we used short grain white rice
- 2 cloves of garlic, sliced
- 1/2 medium onion, chopped
- 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
- Dash of salt
- Dash of cayenne flakes (optional)
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 and 1/4 cups canned red or kidney beans (14 oz or 400 g), drained and rinsed
- 1 cup vegetable stock or water (250 ml)
Instructions
- Cook the rice according to package directions. Set aside.
- Heat some oil, vegetable stock or water in a large pot, add the veggies (garlic, onion and green bell pepper) and cook over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes or until golden brown.
- Add the spices and herbs (thyme, paprika, pepper, salt, cayenne and bay leaf).
- Finally, add the beans and vegetable stock or water, stir and cook over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes. To make the stew thicker, I usually mash some beans using an immersion blender, but feel free to use a fork or a potato masher or just omit this step.
- Serve the beans with the rice immediately. We added some chopped fresh parsley on top, but it’s up to you. Feel free to add some hot sauce as well.
- Keep leftovers in a sealed container for 4-5 days in the fridge.
Notes
- This recipe is usually made with celery, but I’m not a huge celery fan, so I prefer my red beans and rice this way. Feel free to add 1-2 celery sticks if you like it.
- The classic red beans and rice recipe is made with meat. Feel free to use vegan sausages or any other meat alternative if you want.
- Nutritional info is not accurate. The amount of sodium is lower if you drain and rinse well the beans.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/2 of the recipe
- Calories: 402
- Sugar: 5.1 g
- Sodium: 1129 mg
- Fat: 0.5 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 82.2 g
- Fiber: 16.7 g
- Protein: 16.2 g
The recipe was a little plain the way I made it, I am not sure why. I stirred in some Harissa sauce that fixed it right up.
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Hi Karen! I’m so sorry about that 🙁
I made this last week for a church gathering. I followed this exactly as written, but tripled it. VERY tasty meal. I made it again last night and topped it with sliced Beyond Meat sausages and a little cilantro. This will be a go-to. Thank you so much for taking the time to formulate and share this recipe…I could not stop eating it.
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Hi Robert! Sounds so good 🙂
#2 and #4 on instructions say to add veg water. #2 says brown veggies so l am assuming a typo
Hi! There is no typo 🙂 We use oil, vegetable stock, or water to cook the different veggies!
I made enough for a few days and it taste good. I enjoyed making this recipe of red beans and rice because of the simplicity of it with kidney beans instead of red beans. However, I did overcook and lose the sauce impact and I accidentally poured pepper in it so it was spiced for real. It is delicious and will make this again but won’t overcook it well I only overcooked it for 5 minutes but not sure it could have been 20 minutes of overcooking.
Hi! Thanks for your ind comment Maxwell 🙂
Made this tonight! I didn’t have some of the spices so I used smoked paprika, chilli powder, oregano, salt, pepper, and bay leaves. I doubled the recipe for lunches this week and I’m so glad I did! It really thickened up and was so good with the rice. I had seconds! Thank you for sharing the recipe, this will be added to my weekly rotation!
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Thanks for your kind comment! Have a nice day 🙂
This was great! Even my meat loving husband enjoyed it. Thanks!
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Hi Katie! That’s great 🙂 I’m glad you both liked it!
We vooked this today, very nice, thank you!
Hi Nora! Thanks for your kind comment 🙂 Have a nice day!
Just got the pot off the stove and sat down to enjoy a huge bowl of this awesomeness! I skipped the chilli and added 3 cups of liquid but otherwise followed the recipe. Oh my god the flavors are gorgeous! Cumin totally rocks! Thanks for the recipe
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Hi Irina! So glad you liked it 🙂 Have a nice day!
I used this as a base to use up a few dying veggies from the bottom of my crisper. I added a shallot, a small parsnip, a carrot and some celery. My veggie broth was a cube in some boiling water and my beans were pre cooked dried beans from the freezer. I threw in a teaspoon of chili powder.Even with all the frankly sub standard ingredients, it still turned out wonderfully well. Thanks for the inspiration.
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Thanks for your comment 🙂 Have a nice day!
I added oregano, smoked paprika, pink beans and potatoes as well. This was seriously delicious! My picky toddler enjoyed it! That says a lot! Thank you for sharing this simple yet amazing recipe.
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Hi Shaelyn! Thanks for your kind words 🙂 I am so glad you all liked it!
This recipe was quick, easy, and delicious. It was even better the next day as leftovers. I followed the recipe exactly. The sauteed veggies to golden brown give it an incredible taste and if you did not brown the veggies you have missed that taste.
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So glad you liked it Thomas 🙂 Have a nice day!
It was super easy to make and delicious! I love celery so I did add that in with the other vegetables.
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Hi Natasha, sounds so good 🙂 Have a nice day!
ridiculously tasty for something so simple..
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Hi David, thanks for your words 🙂 So glad you enjoyed it!
AMAZING! I live in South Florida and have a coconut tree in my backyard and I decided to use coconut water instead of broth and it gave it a slightly sweet flavor and stickier texture. Overall this recipe is easy and delicious! Will definitely make again.
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Hi Lucas!! That sounds outstandingly delicious!!! Thank you!!! Have a great day!
I added a can of tomatoes and used 1can kidney beans and 1can black beans as it was all I had! but this recipe is fantastic! Thanks
Hi Tanysha!!Thank you so much!! Have a nice day!
I’m back to get this recipe again because it was a winner with my family! I have one vegan and three carnivores to satisfy, so that says a lot about how good this recipe is. I used smoked paprika and it made it taste very authentic.
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Hi Jennifer! So glad you guys liked it 🙂
Great recipe! Thank you! Makes wonderful leftovers.
I hardly ever take the time to review recipes, but this is fabulous! I followed the recipe exactly, only I added a couple ribs of diced celery. It was so delicious and perfectly seasoned. Thank you!
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Hi Hannah! Thank you so much 🙂 So glad you enjoyed it!
This was a very good recipe! Mashing the beans really makes the texture perfect. I used smoked paprika which gave it a good smokey taste.
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Hi Jenny! Thanks a lot 🙂 So glad you liked it!
I think there is a mistake: you added the stock twice – and the first time, I believe you meant to sauté the onions and garlic before adding liquid.
Hi Andrea! It’s okay. In step number 2 I used oil, but I said oil, stock or water for those who don’t use oil 🙂 Then you need to add the 1 cup of stock in step number 4. Have a nice day!
OMG Who said you have to put meat in beans to make them good. This was slap me in the face good.. I used a whole habanero pepper, so it was quite spicy. But thats the way i like my beans. This is a keeper Very tasty.
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Hi Betty! So glad you liked it 🙂
I made this recipe today and it was tasty! Made it with vegan Italian sausage and mixed the rice in!!
Hi Jonathan! Thanks a lot 🙂 Sounds amazing!
I love this recipe! I did add a little sea moss gel to make my sauce a little bit thicker.
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Hi Lasandra! So glad you liked it 🙂
Simply delicious. I love your recipes. Shared on IG…added cabbage too. Thank you. 🌱👌🏻😀
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Hi Lisa! Thanks a lot 🙂 So glad you like our recipes. Have a nice day!
After living in China for more than 4 years, I really love rice!
Thanks a lot for the recipe. I don’t very often comment on blogs, but I found yours in a list of “top 50 vegan blogs”. Now that I want to try to be vegan for a month (for the environment, not necessarily for my health), I will gather a lot of blogs in my bookmark list. Yours is one of them!
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Hi Amund! Thank you so much, I’m so glad you like our blog 😀 Have a nice day!
Please can u tell me… When is stock added… At the start and u boil onions, or at end with beans. You have mentioned stock twice in instructions, Confused
Hi there! You need to add the stock in step number 4, but to cook the veggies you can use oil or some extra stock or water 🙂 Hope it helps!