BEANS AND RICE, AND EVERYTHING NICE.

That's what dinner is made of.

The crisper cabinet in my refrigerator is an unending source of surprise and delight.

Ooh, look - half a red capsicum! What on earth is that – golly, pineapple. Is that red chilli still okay? Goodness, I forgot I stashed a whole bunch of parsley in with the rocket.

Then there’s the cheese box. My storage rule for hard cheeses such as parmesan, gruyere or manchego is to wrap each in paper towel, then in plastic wrap, place in a sealed plastic container, say three hail marys and store it in the crisper. They never grow mould and never grow old. You do have to remember that they are there, however.

But back to the task at hand, which is what to do with a bowl of left-over cooked rice in the fridge. First stop is the crisper, to discover the afore-mentioned red capsicum and bunch of parsley.

Then to the pantry for a can of red kidney beans, because there is just something so nice about rice and beans. Even about saying it out loud.

Especially when the rice is basmati, which is drier than jasmine, and less chummy. Basmati grains stay independent of one another; jasmine likes to stick together. This toss-dinner-together-in-a-jiffy recipe will work with either; it’s just that basmati will make it easier.

To be clear, this is nothing like a Louisiana-inspired red beans and rice, and nor is it strictly Mexican, although I do lean that way by serving it with lime and corn chips.

It’s just beans and rice, with red onion, red capsicum, red chilli (all the reds), and something spicy to jazz it up.

Anyone got any Old Bay spice mix on the shelf? Terry brought some home so I threw in a teaspoonful, and that was fun. Created in Baltimore as a seasoning for seafood, it’s essentially made up of celery salt, paprika, black pepper, cayenne pepper and mustard powder, with some of the warmer spices such as cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg rounding it out.

If you don’t have Old Bay, make up your own with the above guide, or just chuck in some cumin and dried oregano, again pushing down Mexico way.

Serve your beans and rice with – sausages, pan-fried salmon, poached chicken, a whole heap of greens, a fried egg, or nothing else at all. Good for lunch with canned tuna, maybe? Go further down the Mexican path with some salsa?

It’s entirely up to you and your crisper, your pantry and your spice shelf.

Here it is with a quickly pan-fried fillet of ruby snapper, fresh lime, a few corn chips and some extra red onion. Everything nice, in fact.

RED BEANS AND RICE

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

• Half red onion, finely sliced

• 1 red capsicum, diced

• Half red chilli, sliced

• 1 garlic clove, grated

• 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning, or see note above

• 1 tsp dried oregano

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 300 g cooked, day-old rice

• 400 g canned red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

• 2 tbsp chopped parsley and/or coriander

• 1 lime or lemon

• Extra lime or lemon and corn chips for serving

Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the red onion, capsicum and chilli for 5 to 10 minutes until softened; no need to overdo it.

Add the garlic, Old Bay spice mix, oregano and sea salt, stirring.

Add the rice to the pan, crumbling it in your fingers, and toss well until coated.

Add the red kidney beans, tossing well until heated through.

Taste for salt and spice, add a big squeeze of lime or lemon and most of the chopped herbs, tossing.

Serve with lime or lemon wedges for squeezing, remaining herbs, and corn chips. Serves 2-3.

TO COOK BASMATI RICE

• 200 g basmati rice

• 300 ml water

• 2 tbsp chopped coriander

Rinse the rice well, shake dry, and place in a lidded pan.

Add water and bring to the boil.

Turn down the heat immediately, cover tightly, and leave on a very low simmer for 15 minutes.

Turn off the heat (no lifting the lid), and leave for 5 minutes, then fluff up with a rubber spatula.

I generally cook 200 g rice, which makes 600 g cooked rice, which feeds two people over two meals. For the beans and rice recipe, cook the rice the day before, or if you’re in a rush, spread it out on a tray to cool and dry out a bit.

Thanks for dropping by! And thanks for your comments and suggestions. Special thanks to Terry for the Old Bay spice mix. He’s taking his Old Spice nickname quite seriously it seems.

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I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waters upon which I work, live, cook and play; the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Thank you for sharing your culture, traditions, knowledge, spirit, art, music, humour and food traditions, allowing us all to experience a greater sense of belonging in this ancient land.