Smoky Cajun Jambalaya Recipes

SHRIMP AND SMOKED SAUSAGE JAMBALAYA

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high. Add sausage; cook about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Add onion, celery, bell pepper, garlic, and jalapeno. Cook 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently, until vegetables are softened. Add rice and cook, stirring constantly, 30 seconds.
• Add stock, tomatoes, salt, and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until rice is just tender, 10 minutes. Add shrimp, cover, and cook until shrimp turn pink, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in scallions and lemon juice. Garnish with additional scallions.

CAJUN PORK JAMBALAYA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
• In a large, heavy cast-iron pot with a heavy lid over medium-high heat, fry the bacon until crispy. Remove the bacon, chop into pieces and save for later.
• Add the onions, celery, and bell pepper to the bacon drippings. Cook until translucent and add the garlic. Cook for another 2 minutes and then remove the vegetables to a platter.
• In the same pot, add the sausages, tasso, and ham. Continue to sauté until the meats turn brown, about 5 to 10 minutes. Deglaze the pot by pouring in the beer and scraping the bits from the bottom of the pot while stirring.
• Add the bacon pieces, all of the browned vegetables, parsley, and green onions. Add the cayenne and a couple of shakes of hot sauce along with salt and black pepper to taste.
• Add the rice to the pot and stir until evenly distributed. Add the stock and stir again.
• Here is the important point of jambalaya cooking - cover the pot and place in the hot oven for 1 hour. Open a cold beer and forget about it. Do not stir or even raise the lid on the pot for the first hour. In that hour, all the flavors are coming together, and the rice is gently cooking.
• At the end of 1 hour, take a peek, but do not stir (or it will become sticky and starchy). Make sure most of the stock has been absorbed and take a taste to see if the rice is cooked to at least al dente. If so, turn off the oven, cover the pot and let it continue cooking in the carryover heat of the oven for another 20 minutes.
• When your guests are seated, remove the pot from the oven and place in the middle of the table. Uncover and dig in. Oh, and be sure to have lots of French bread and ice-cold beer.

CAJUN CHICKEN AND SAUSAGE JAMBALAYA

Steps:

• The most important thing is to use the right equipment and I would suggest the following: a 2-gallon cast iron Dutch oven, a high BTU gas stove, and a large stainless steel chef's spoon.
• Use high heat to preheat the Dutch oven and add the sausage. Using a chef's spoon or large spoon, constantly move the sausage from the bottom of the pot. Be careful not to burn the meat. (Normally I use Manda's sausage because it has little fat, however at this point you may want to drain off all of the excess grease to reduce the fat content from the dish.)
• Add the thigh meat and brown the chicken on all sides. Again use the spoon to scrape the meat from sticking and burning to the bottom of the pot. Browning the sausage and chicken meats should take 20 minutes. Be careful not to over cook the thigh meat to the point that it shreds.
• Lower the heat to medium and add the onions and garlic; saute for about 15 minutes or until the onions are very limp and "clear". Scrape the bottom of the pot to remove all the "graton". This is where the jambalaya gets its distinct brown color and taste.
• Add the tasso, thyme, basil and black and white pepper. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. This will give the seasonings time to release their oils and flavors.
• At this point the jambalaya concentrate can be transferred to smaller containers, cooled to room temperature, covered and refrigerated for future use. (This is what we do commercially; it allows the seasonings to marry.)
• When you are ready to cook the jambalaya, add the stock to the concentrate and bring to a rolling boil. Add the rice, reduce the heat to medium and gently break up the rice. Using the stainless steel paddle, continue to insure that the rice is not sticking to the bottom of the pot; this is very important!
• After about 5 minutes, fold in the parsley. Continue to scrape the pot to insure that no rice sticks to the bottom. When the jambalaya returns to a boil, reduce heat to the lowest possible setting and simmer, covered, for at least 25 minutes. Do not remove the cover while the rice is steaming.
• If Manda's brand sausage is not available, any lean smoked sausage can be substituted. You may have to remove any excess grease from the pot after frying down an unknown sausage.
• For a richer jambalaya substitute turkey stock for the chicken stock called for above.
• If no stocks are available, then chicken soup base can be used. Be careful with your seasoning, as bases are usually full of salt.
• Alternate Method:
• The jambalaya is best when served directly out of the cast iron pot. While the rice is steaming, the sausage and meat will have a tendency to float to the surface of the jambalaya. Therefore, after the rice has steamed for 25 minutes, use the paddle to gently fold in the meat and seasonings into the cooked rice. This should only be done once or twice, the rice will loose a lot of heat and the rice will break apart.
• Also note, I do not add salt to my jambalaya. This is because I like to use herbs, tasso and seasonings to satisfy the need for salt. I would suggest having the table set with salt shakers and a selection of hot pepper sauces.
• Plate Presentation:

SMOKY CAJUN JAMBALAYA

Steps:

• Cut sausage into 1/2-inch pieces; cut chicken into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Cook sausage in oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat 3 minutes or until browned.
• Add chicken, and cook, stirring constantly, 3 minutes or until browned.
• Stir in ham, and cook until thoroughly heated.
• Remove meat mixture, reserving 1 tablespoon drippings in Dutch oven.
• Return meat mixture to Dutch oven; stir in Cajun seasoning and next 5 ingredients.
• Cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Stir in chicken broth and remaining ingredients; cook, stirring constanly, 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

CAJUN JAMBALAYA

Steps:

• For the Creole seasoning: Combine the salt, black pepper, cayenne, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, white pepper and cumin in a medium bowl.
• For the jambalaya: Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 5-quart heavy-bottomed pot or large Dutch oven over medium heat. Rub the chicken with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and 2 tablespoons of the Creole seasoning in a medium bowl until evenly coated. Add the chicken to the pot and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a large bowl. Add the sausage to the pot and cook until browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to the large bowl with the chicken. The bottom of the pot should be covered with browned bits.
• Add the celery, onions and peppers and cook, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pot occasionally, until the onions are translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf, cayenne, thyme and 2 teaspoons Creole seasoning. Add the rice and stir once or twice to coat. Stir in the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, cooked chicken and sausage and remaining Creole seasoning. Stir in the chicken stock. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook until the liquid is reduced, and you see little holes on the top, about 30 minutes.
• Use a fork to stir in half of the green onions and fluff the rice. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Garnish with the remaining green onions and serve immediately.