Red Beans and Rice

1 pound dry red beans

water to cover beans

6 large ham hocks (3 ½-4 pounds)

16 c. water, in all

2 ½ c. finely chopped celery

2 c. finely chopped onions

2 c. finely chopped green peppers

5 bay leaves

2 t. white pepper

2 t. dried thyme

1 ½ t. garlic powder

1 ½ t. oregano

1 t. ground red pepper

½ t. black pepper

1 T. tabasco sauce

1 pound smoked sausage

cooked rice

Cover the beans with water 2 inches above the beans. Let stand overnight. Drain before using. Place the ham hocks, 10 cups of the water, celery, onions, peppers, bay leaves and seasonings in a 5 ½ quart dutch oven, stir well. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until meat in fork tender, about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Remove the ham hocks from pan and set aside. Add the drained beans and 4 cups of the water to the pan, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes, stirring often. Stir in the sausage and continue simmering until the beans start breaking up, about 35 minutes, scraping pan bottom fairly often. Add ham hocks and cook and stir 10 minutes more. Serve immediately. To serve, for each serving, mound rice in the middle of a plate, place ham hock and sausage on plate, spoon a generous amount of red beans over the rice.