Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

The Cajun cuisine attempts continue..... This was less intimidating that the gumbo for sure but it was still something I wasn't sure if I could pull off. It worked though!!! With delicious results. My sister-in-law and my hubs are both super spice freaks ( I am not ) and added Tabasco and more crushed red pepper at the table.


You can easily make this with shrimp as well and there are instructions for that in the original recipe from Cooking Light. My hubs does not like seafood and that is why none of my dishes contain any! I will need to change that though... The link is under the name of the recipe as per usual! I doubled the recipe because I wanted a lot of leftovers and there certainly was plenty! It also reheats marvelously and would be an easy dish to make ahead of time if you are having company. One thing I really liked about this is there is no need for a side dish to go with it. This is also a man approved dish!!


I changed it up again as per usual and added more vegetables because I love me some veggie deliciousness. I also followed the advice of many reviewers on the original recipe and cooked the rice before I added it to the jambalaya. I cooked it significantly longer than the recipe recommended as well. I wanted the flavors to have time to really blend together and, in my opinion, it helped the rice to soak up the juices and become your typical jambalaya texture. 


Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya
Cooking Light
Printable Version

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 teaspoons Tony Chacheres or salt and pepper
• 2 cups chopped smoked sausage
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 2 cups chopped green bell pepper
• 2 cups chopped celery
• 3 garlic clove, minced
• 2 cups uncooked rice (I used boil in a bag brown rice from Kroger)
• 5 cups fat-free chicken broth
• 4 teaspoons paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 2 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
• Tabasco sauce

Preparation:

• 1. Cook rice to your liking and set aside. I undercooked it a little bit so it would finish up in the broth.
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• 2. Heat oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with Tony's or salt and black pepper. Brown the chicken for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally and remove from the dutch oven and set aside. Then in the same dutch oven brown the sausage for about five minutes.

3. Add the onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic. Cover and reduce heat to medium and cook until vegetables are tender. About ten minutes. 

4. Add broth, paprika, thyme, red pepper, tomatoes and chicken. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 30 minutes, skimming the fat off the top as it rises. Towards the end of these 30 minutes is a good time to start seasoning it to your taste with Tony Chachere's, salt and pepper, and Tabasco.

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5. Add the rice and simmer for another 15 minutes. Just keep an eye on it and when it starts to look like it's thickened up. 

6. Before serving stir in green onions and keep a few on the side to garnish each dish! I put hot sauce on the table for my beloved little heat seekers.

• Enjoy!

ME