Rice Dressing — The Recipe That Carries a Tradition Forward

Happy new year. 2023. Tyler's New Year's Eve was exactly as loud as promised and I loved all of it. His brothers are an experience. Marcus is the oldest and the most settled. There are two others, Devon and Liam, who are loud in complementary ways. The four of them together at midnight was genuinely joyful in a way that required no alcohol to sustain, just volume and the specific pleasure of people who grew up together and like being together still.

At midnight Tyler was next to me with his arm around my shoulders and we kissed when the countdown ended and Marcus said get a room and Devon said let them have it and Debbie said from across the room: happy new year, sweetheart, to me specifically, and that word from her landed the same way it did the first time, full of intention.

I made the black-eyed peas and collard greens on Sunday, the first day of 2023, at Gloria's. The tradition that is now eight years old if you count from my first January there. I made the cornbread from memory. I did not need the index card. I have not needed it in two years. The cornbread was right, exactly right, the crust golden-dark and the center tender and the whole thing a proper color and texture that I now carry in my body like knowledge that belongs to me.

Gloria said: this is your cornbread now, not mine. You have made it yours. She said it simply, as a fact. I said thank you. She said: that is how it is supposed to work.

The black-eyed peas and collard greens were already spoken for — they belong to that Sunday ritual, to Gloria’s kitchen, to eight years of showing up and learning. But a table like that one, the kind that holds that much history and that many people, always needs something else alongside it. Rice dressing is that dish for me: savory and generous, the kind of thing that fills a pan and feeds a crowd and asks nothing complicated of you except that you pay attention. It felt right for the first Sunday of a new year, and it felt right for a table where I’m finally, fully, at home.

Rice Dressing

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 45 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground pork sausage
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups long-grain white rice, uncooked
• 3 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup chicken livers, finely chopped (optional)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced, for garnish

Instructions

1. Brown the sausage. In a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, cook the ground sausage, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon, until browned and cooked through, about 7–8 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a plate, leaving the drippings in the pan.
2. Cook the vegetables. Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion, celery, and bell pepper to the drippings in the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 6–8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more until fragrant.
3. Add chicken livers (if using). Stir in the chopped chicken livers and cook for 3–4 minutes until no longer pink. This adds depth and a traditional richness to the dressing.
4. Toast the rice. Add the uncooked rice to the pan and stir to coat in the drippings and vegetables. Toast for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
5. Season and add broth. Return the browned sausage to the pan. Add the chicken broth, salt, black pepper, smoked paprika, and cayenne. Stir to combine and bring to a boil.
6. Simmer until tender. Reduce heat to low, cover tightly, and cook for 20–22 minutes, until the rice has absorbed the broth and is fully cooked. Do not lift the lid during cooking.
7. Finish and fluff. Remove from heat. Add the butter and let it sit, covered, for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork, folding the butter gently through the rice.
8. Garnish and serve. Transfer to a serving dish and top with sliced green onions. Serve warm alongside black-eyed peas, collard greens, or cornbread.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 390 | Protein: 15g | Fat: 18g | Carbs: 42g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 620mg