Louisiana Jambalaya

About This Recipe

Jambalaya is Louisiana's great contribution to American rice cookery — a one-pot feast of seasoned rice, smoky andouille sausage, tender chicken and sweet gulf shrimp, built on the aromatic foundation of onion, celery and bell pepper known as the Cajun and Creole 'holy trinity.' Born from the cultural crossroads of New Orleans, it blends Spanish paella (via Creole influence), West African rice techniques, and Native American and French flavors into something uniquely, defiantly American. There are two schools: Creole (New Orleans-style, with tomatoes, giving the rice a reddish hue) and Cajun (country-style, without tomatoes, where the rice gets its brown color from the fond — the browned bits from searing the meats). Both are delicious; this recipe follows the Creole tradition. The critical technique is the rice: it must cook in the same pot as all the other ingredients, absorbing the layers of flavor developed from browning the meats and aromatics. Jambalaya is party food by nature — it scales up effortlessly and feeds a crowd from a single pot. Make it for Mardi Gras, a tailgate, or any occasion requiring a dish that impresses without demanding constant attention. The leftovers, if any survive, are exceptional the next day.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 12 ozandouille sausage(sliced into rounds)
• 1 lbbone-in chicken thighs(cut into 2-inch pieces)
• 1 lblarge shrimp(peeled and deveined)
• 1 largeyellow onion(diced)
• 1green bell pepper(diced)
• 3 stalkscelery(diced)
• 5 clovesgarlic(minced)
• 1 can (14 oz)diced tomatoes
• 2½ cupslong-grain white rice
• 3½ cupschicken broth
• 2 tbspCreole seasoning (Tony Chachere's or homemade)
• 1 tspsmoked paprika
• 2 tbspvegetable oil
• 3green onions(sliced, to garnish)
• ¼ cupfresh flat-leaf parsley(chopped, to garnish)

Instructions

1. 1

   Brown the sausage

   Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown andouille sausage rounds 3–4 minutes until caramelized. Remove with a slotted spoon. Leave drippings in the pot.

   The dark fond left by the sausage is flavor gold. Don't clean the pot.

2. 2

   Brown the chicken

   Season chicken with half the Creole seasoning. Brown in the same pot 3–4 minutes per side. Remove. Add more oil if needed.

3. 3

   Sauté the holy trinity

   Add onion, bell pepper and celery to the pot. Cook 6 minutes until softened. Add garlic and remaining Creole seasoning. Cook 1 minute.

4. 4

   Add tomatoes and rice

   Stir in diced tomatoes, scraping up any browned bits. Add rice and stir to coat in the aromatics for 1 minute.

5. 5

   Simmer with meats

   Return sausage and chicken to the pot. Pour in chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and cook 20 minutes.

   Resist the urge to lift the lid during the 20-minute simmer — steam is cooking the rice.

6. 6

   Add shrimp

   Uncover, add shrimp on top of the rice. Cover and cook 5 more minutes until shrimp are pink and rice has absorbed all liquid.

7. 7

   Fluff and serve

   Gently fold the jambalaya. Garnish with green onions and parsley. Serve directly from the pot.

Variations

• •

  Vegetarian Jambalaya: replace meats with red beans, smoked tofu and extra vegetables.

• •

  Seafood Jambalaya: skip chicken and sausage, use crab, oysters and more shrimp.

• •

  Cajun Brown Jambalaya: omit tomatoes, add more browning to the rice for the country-style brown version.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 4 days. The rice absorbs more liquid as it sits — reheat with a splash of broth and stir gently.

Frequently Asked Questions