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Cajun cuisine first developed out of necessity and actual survival. The Acadian refugees (those who we have come to know as Cajuns and Creole folks) were pretty broke after their British expulsion. So they settled in the U.S. and learned how to live off the land and waters in the country and bayous.  They adapted their native French rustic cuisine to local ingredients including rice and sugar cane.

Many Cajun families were large, consisting of eight to twelve people—and I bet you thought your family was big!  Traditional Cajun cuisine as well as Creole grew from off of supplementing rice with whatever meat, game or other proteins were available to serve such a big gang.  A large percentage of the men took jobs as fishermen and deckhands, while the ladies and younger kids stayed around the home place and tended the garden.  As the men were payed weekly for smaller than average pay, they were also compensated by taking home some of the days catch that was culled out as substandard for the markets.  So, when they got home they surrendered the catch of the day to the wife so she could use it for the next days meal.  They had to use it quickly because most could not afford refridgeration of any kind at that time.  Thus came the frequent use of seafood in most Cajun and Creole recipes.  Also, foods like Gumbo and Jambalaya came to be in order to use any and all leftovers to stretch the next meal a lil' farther.  Now, Red Beans and Rice came about because of the womans need to take a break.  She could use a little sausage, Red Beans, and of course rice to make not only a cheaper meal, but since it cooked low and slow, she could put them on Sunday morning early and leave them be till late afternoon without much attention or work involved.  This gave her some time for church, visiting friends or loved ones, and still get a little rest from the long week of family duties and tending the homestead.