Jambalaya

A couple of weeks ago I received a request from one of my readers (Cedric) to do a rice dish.  I love rice so I knew this was going to be a great suggestion.  I started to think about what I like in dish.  Meat, veggies and a great flavor.  One of Cedric’s suggestions was to do a Jambalaya.  This sounded great.  So I started to research Jambalaya’s.  Most used pre-cooked protein and/or required a lot of work.  I wanted a one pot dish that would be tasty and full of flavor.  So I decided to make a chicken, andouille and shrimp Jambalaya.  Yep, a kitchen sink Jambalaya.

The Jambalaya had a little kick of heat and an excellent flavor.

Jambalaya

• 2 chicken breasts – cubed
• 4-6 oz fresh andouille sausage – sliced
• 1/2 pound shrimp – cooked – either pre-cooked, steamed, boiled or quickly fried.
  
• 1 tbs butter
• 1 tbs vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1 red bell pepper
• 2 stalks of celery
• 4 cloves garlic
• 14oz can of diced tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups long grain rice
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/4 tsp sage
• 1/4 tsp dried mustard
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat butter and oil in a large pan over medium/high heat.  Add the chicken and andouille sausage.  Season with a little salt and pepper.  Cook till browned.

Stir in the onion, garlic, bell pepper and celery.  Add the seasonings minus the bay leaves.  Cook until the onions and peppers are tender.

Add the tomatoes and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Add the rice and bay leaves.  Stir and then add the chicken stock.  Bring to a boil and then cover.  Simmer for 20 minutes.

Stir and add the shrimp.  Cover and continue to cook for another 5 minutes or until the rice is tender.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Then it is time to enjoy.

This is a simple one pot recipe that had tremendous flavor.  If you do not have chicken stock feel free to use store bought chicken broth.  While the flavor will not be as intense it will still be delicious.