Dominican Rice and Beans

This is another recipe I found in $5 dinner mom's cookbook.  It was pretty good as well.  I found it to be a bit salty, so I'd probably cut down on the salt.  I had to double the recipe in the book, and I felt it needed more cumin.  I wasn't super happy with the flavor added by the Adobo Seasoning.  I thought I had used this before, but it was not what I had remembered.  I totally didn't follow directions on the rice because I wanted everything to finish cooking while I was taking a kid to soccer practice, and I used brown rice instead of white.  I did learn a new fact though - brown rice will pop like popcorn if left long enough in hot oil.  :) Anyway, this is how I made it.  Turned out well for starting from dry beans.

Ingredients

• 2 cups dried red kidney beans
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1.5 Tablespoons oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
• 1/4 cup dehydrated red and green pepper mix (or use regular - I was just being lazy)
• 3 Tablespoons dehydrated onion flakes
• 2 sprigs fresh cilantro
• 4 teaspoons Adobo seasoning (would probably drop to 2 or 3 and up cumin next time)
• dash cumin (would up to at least a teaspoon next time.)
• a few grinds of pepper

Directions

1. Soak kidney beans overnight or if you forget like me, just boil them and let them soak in the hot water for 2 hour.  Drain and rinse the beans.  Put them back in a medium saucepan and cover with 2 inches of water.  Bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat and cook for 45 min to 1 hour.  
2. In a medium saucepan heat oil.  Add the rice to the oil.  Stir and let rice brown a bit (but not too much or it will pop :)  Original had you add hot water to the pan and cook it.  I moved mine over to the rice cooker, added the water and set it to cook while away.
3. After the beans have cooked for 45 min - 1 hour, add tomato paste, bell pepper, onion, adobo seasoning and cilantro.  Let beans finish cooking - 30 min to 1 hour (depending on when you added the extra stuff - I opted for a shorter time up front and longer later to be gone during the last part of cooking time.)  
4. Serve beans over rice.