Birthday Red Beans and Rice

Today is Michael's birthday, and for a special birthday treat I made (at his request) red beans and rice. I decided to make it with dried red beans rather than canned red beans, and what came out was extraordinary. I'm posting the recipe here to share (also at Michael's request), and also so I can find it easily when I want to make it again.

After soaking a cup (8 oz.) of red beans in water overnight, I cut up:

a red onion,
a green pepper,
three celery stalks,
and three cloves of garlic

I cooked them in a heavy saucepan in some olive oil until the onion no longer looked red (a white or yellow onion would work just as well).

Then I threw in 2 chopped canned chipotle peppers,
the drained soaked beans,
two bay leaves,
a teaspoon of oregano,
a teaspoon of sage,
a little bit of cayanne,
three cups of water,
and a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce

and simmered everything (with a cover) for about 30 minutes.

I dissolved two teaspoons of "Better than Bouillon" soup base (I used the vegetable kind, but any kind will do) in a cup of water, and threw it in the pot (I always find that beans cook better if you cook them without salt for a while). I let it cook (with its cover) for an additional hour (while the short-grain brown rice cooked in another pot), and it was magical.

It's also cheap and healthy (important for musicians). If you double the recipe (which means you would use the whole bag of beans rather than half) it could last you all week.