Red Beans and Rice

Red beans and rice isn't my go-to dish when I think of Creole cuisine; that spot is held by the more complex dishes like jambalaya and gumbo. Yet every time I make this dish, I wonder why it isn't higher on my list. The brilliant mix of savory beans and gravy over sweet white rice always feeds my soul as well as the more opulent dishes do. Alton Brown's recipe brings the flavor in at just about 2 hours of cooking, assuming you've already put in the 3 days necessary to pickle the pork. (And if you haven't... well you should, but I won't tell anybody if you substitute a nice link of andouille or the like.)