Jambalaya

Name: Jambalaya
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Total time: 1 h 50 min
Yield: 8-10 serving(s)
Ingredients: 2 teaspoons shortening; 1 cup onion, finely chopped; 1 cup green pepper, finely chopped; 1 cup celery, finely chopped; 4 garlic cloves, minced; 1 chicken, cut into pieces; 2 lbs chorizo sausage (or a good reliable hot sausage you know of) or 2 lbs andouille sausages (or a good reliable hot sausage you know of); 3 cups fresh ripe tomatoes, chopped or 2 (14 1/2 ounce) cans diced tomatoes; 2 1/2 cups chicken stock; 2 teaspoons thyme; 1/2 teaspoon oregano; 1 teaspoon parsley; 1 teaspoon cayenne (what ever your taste buds can handle) or 1 teaspoon chili powder (what ever your taste buds can handle); 1 1/2 teaspoons salt; 1 teaspoon black pepper; 6 cups cooked long-grain rice; cayenne (to offer at table) or Tabasco sauce (to offer at table)

Community Pick

Submitted by Diana Adcock

"Really good. I do cook the rice separate, that way I don't make glue, and you can make it hotter-I do!"

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photo by anniesnomsblog

Ready In:: 1hr 50mins
Ingredients:: 17
Serves:: 8

ingredients

2 teaspoons shortening
1 cup onion, finely chopped
1 cup green pepper, finely chopped
1 cup celery, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 chicken, cut into pieces
2 lbs chorizo sausage (or a good reliable hot sausage you know of) or 2 lbs andouille sausages (or a good reliable hot sausage you know of)
2 cups fresh ripe tomatoes, chopped or (14 1/2 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
2 ¹⁄₂ cups chicken stock
2 teaspoons thyme
¹⁄₂ teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon parsley
1 teaspoon cayenne (what ever your taste buds can handle) or 1 teaspoon chili powder (what ever your taste buds can handle)
1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
6 cups cooked long-grain rice
cayenne (to offer at table) or Tabasco sauce (to offer at table)

directions

Melt shortening in a large/huge saucepan over medium heat.
Cook chicken pieces until brown on all sides and cooked about half way through, around 20 minutes or so.
Remove and add onion, green pepper, celery and garlic.
Cook slowly stirring now and again until onions are tender.
Add sausage and cook 10 min more.
Return chicken and add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT rice and stir together well.
Cover and simmer for 30 min stirring now and again.
Remove cover and continue to cook until broth cooks down a bit-you don't want it too thick as the rice will soak up the juice.
Serve up the rice in bowls and ladle the Jambalaya on top, and offer more cayenne or Tabasco at the table.
***I know that cooking the rice on the side and not in the dish will cause some to have a heart attack, but I've found the flavor much better this way, IMHO.
Diana.

Questions & Replies

I always thought that Jambayla had shrimp in it. The best I ever had was when I visited a friend in New Orleans, and the closest have come to enjoying it since then has been at a restaurant called Not Your Ordinary Joe's, at least I think that is the name of the restaurant?

Debbie M.

Reviews

Very good AND the kids liked it too! I also used chicken breasts, hot sausage & some shrimp at the end. This one is definately a keeper. Thanks.

Wendy13
Wow, this was sooooo good and I can't wait to make it again! I did make a couple of small changes...substituted diced ham for the chicken (only because I didn't have any chicken) and added shrimp. I'm going to make sure I have chicken the next time I make this. I always cook my rice separately also because DH doesn't eat rice.

Dreamgoddess
This was a great recipe for any level cook. I am by no means a culinary genius, and making this recipe was a cinch. I found that adding the hot sausages really gave this recipe a kick and complimented the cayenne well (while not being too hot). This is definitely a recipe that we are going to keep!!!

pumpkingirl31
This was very good!!! I used chicken breasts, hot italian sausage and threw in some shrimp right at the very end. I used red pepper instead of green because that is all I had. Great flavour. I prefer the rice cooked seperatley as well. I will definatley make this again and again. Thanks for another great recipe Diana!

LeeAnn
Ok, first of all, Chorizo is a Mexican sausage and would NEVER be used in Jambalaya. Secondly, if you REALLY know how to cook Jambalaya, you WON'T make glue of the rice and this is a rice dish, not a dish served over rice. Someone from SE Louisiana needs to teach you how to make REAL Jambalaya, because THIS is not how. Sorry!

Melody D.

see 64 more reviews

Tweaks

You are right about the heart attack. The recipe looks great but you should not have called it Jambalaya. The origin of New Orleans jambalaya is Jollof rice, a West African dish. Many of the slaves that lived in New Orleans came from West Africa and would have been familiar with the dish of Jollof rice. Like jambalaya, Jollof rice was traditionally made from whatever ingredients were handy, such as seafood, crawfish, and various meats. Tomatoes are always present in its preparation. Creole jambalaya with shrimp, ham, tomato, and andouille sausage. Another origin states jambalaya originates from the French Quarter of New Orleans, in the original sector. It was an attempt by the Spanish to make paella in the New World, where saffron was not readily available due to import costs. Tomatoes became the substitute for saffron. As time went on, French influence became strong in New Orleans, and spices from the Caribbean changed this New World paella into a unique dish. In modern Louisiana, the dish has evolved along a variety of different lines. Creole jambalaya, or red jambalaya, is found primarily in and around New Orleans, where it is simply known as "jambalaya". Creole jambalaya includes tomatoes, whereas Cajun jambalaya does not. Either way - the rice is cooked with the rest of the ingredients. It is never separate like it is in gumbo.

Caddy Lady
Wouldn't be cooking if you didn't "tweak" any recipe. Added a bay leaf, cut the thyme (dried) to a half teaspoon. Only had a single can of tomatoes, threw in a tablespoon of tomato paste. Cut the stock down to 1 1/2 cups.

Biff W.
I loved this recipe! Of course I made a few alterations: I served it with Spanish rice instead of white, and I ended up cooking the rice with the Jambalaya. I didn't intend to, as I was afraid it would become glue like, but I found that there was A LOT of liquid left even after simmering it down for a good half hour (hence 4 stars instead of 5). As luck would have it my rice was a little dry so it worked out well in the end but had that not been the case it would have been rather soupy. I love that there was nothing obscure in the ingredients, the only thing I had to shop for was the sausage.

candicepsmith
I don't use as much (or any) chicken, and add hot Italian sausage along with the chorizo. Often I also add fresh shrimp (tail off, etc..) late in the cooking, so they don't become rubber. This our family's go to around the winter holiday season.

ccuddy
This was spicy and excellent. I substituted half the green pepper for hot pepper. And decreased the celery because some in the family don't like it. I might try to add more vegetables next time. I will definitely make this again the next time we are looking for a spicy meal. The consistency was good- not too thick, not too runny.

Spencer #2