Rice - your favorite type. Even Yellow rice is nice with beans layered on top... I prefer brown rice as it is higher in nutrition. I usually use about half of a small bag.
Beans - your favorite type - I like Black beans, and red beans. I usually use about half of a small bag.
Meat - if you eat meat your favorite type. Usually a little bit of sausage or bacon helps give some flavoring to the beans and rice mixture. One can also use vegetarian substitute meats but these do not always do so well with long cooking and one may want to add them close to the end of the cooking. The meat is usually used to enhance the flavor not so much as for adding nutrition as beans and rice are considered to be a complete protein.
Enough salt to cover the indent in the palm of your hand.
Usually anything I cook regularily I am able to forgo the recipe book after awhile and cook according to what is available in my kitchen...kind of a stone or nail soup type deal.
Almost all bean packages have a list of suggested spices. I like to buy prepared spice groups. As I no longer eat meat it is a bit difficult to get the same flavor as when I could add just a little bacon or sausage to the beans while they were cooking.
I like red pepper, cayene in small amounts, and a variety of spices. You can always add a seasoning or a seasoning salt afterwards and have it on the table for everyone to add to their own specific preferences. Along with some hot liquid spices such as tobasco sauce or hot pepper liquid.
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Usually I prefer to take my rice and beans and place them in seperate bowls. I rinse them carefully to remove anything that I do not want in them. I then fill the bowls with water above the level of the rice and beans. Then allow them to sit about a day to a day and a half to soak up the water and soften. This decreases the cooking time and usually they will cook and soften evenly. Rapid cooking often leaves uneven soft and hard places in the rice. But if you are pressed for time you can cook each component seperately then add them together as unsoaked rice and beans will not cook well together evenly. You will end up with hard dry beans and mushy rice. White Rice takes less time to cook so you can start cooking it after you have started your beans.
After soaking your beans and rice for about a day or so drain the water and carefully rinse again. If it is brown rice you can mix them together to cook. As white rice has the external layer removed it tends to cook faster so it is better to cook it seperately then put the beans on top for looks after cooking is done.
Place the beans and rice in a pot of slightly salted water (the salt is to increase the boiling temperature not so much as to preseason the mixture. Bring to a boil while stirring occassionally to mix the mixture. Then decrease the temperature to a slow simmer. Add the seasonings you prefer or are recommended. Cook until the rice and beans are both soft all the way through. This can be checked by biting into a few beans and rice which are disbursed all the way through the mixture.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
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