This spicy Creole Jambalaya with smoked andouille chicken sausage and jumbo wild-caught prawn is inspired by a time-tested family recipe, with a healthier spin. The addition of fresh spinach and asparagus, and the omission of pork make this a nourishing, and perfectly-seasoned complete meal for the whole fam to enjoy.
Looking for more healthy New Orleans inspired recipes? Try my Cajun Shrimp and Cauliflower Grits.
What is Jambalaya?
Jambalaya is quintessential New Orleans comfort food. It’s theorized that when Spanish settlers made it to Louisiana and couldn’t find saffron to make Paella, they wound up with Jambalaya: a one pot tomatoey rice dish seasoned with a trinity of onion, celery, bell peppers, and topped with savory smoked sausage, shrimp and sometimes chicken, too. It also gives a nod to Jollof, an African rice dish that varies drastically from region to region.
On a more personal note…
My mom makes a big pan of Jambalaya every Christmas Eve for my family of 14. It’s always so comforting and somehow, there’s always still leftovers. She tweaks a recipe from the late famed Creole and Cajun chef Paul Prudhomme, known for putting cajun cuisine on the map in the US.
Chef Paul used smoked ham, smoked andouille sausage, shrimp and oysters in his recipe. Since I eat meat sparingly, I omitted the ham and opted for smoked chicken sausage and shrimp. I do love any excuse to eat oysters, but I didn’t have time to go to Whole Foods and grab them so take or leave whatever meats are your favorite here. Jambalaya is endlessly customizable depending on your preferences so take what I suggest and add your own spin!
How to Make Jambalaya
To be honest, I was quite overwhelmed making such a family staple, but it came together so effortlessly. Start by cooking the chopped sausage in a pan with a little oil until crispy. I love using my grandma’s cast iron skillet because it gets the outside of meats crispy while keeping the inside soft and juicy. Next, add the vegetables and sauté until tender. After that, add in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, spices, chicken or veggie stock, rice, shrimp and vegetables. Give it all a stir and transfer into a large baking dish. Cover the dish with aluminum foil to keep the moisture in so that the rice can cook. This dish should take about an hour to cook. You’ll know its finished when the rice is fully cooked.
A Few Tips
- To keep the rice from getting soggy, I like to start with about 3 cups of chicken stock. As it cooks in the oven, I add about a cup more of stock in small increments to ensure I have just the right amount. Somewhere between 3-4 cups should do the trick
- If you love a crispy edge, uncover the pan at the end and cook on low broil for about 2-3 minutes, until the tomato sauce is caramelized around the edges and the shrimp and sausage is golden and crisp.
- To ensure the jambalaya stays moist for leftovers, you can add about a fourth of a cup more stock before storing it, and the rice will soak it up
- The jambalaya can be stored in Tupperware quite easily for a delicious re-heatable meal anytime
Modification Ideas
- For a keto-friendly or low-carb spin, simply sub white rice for cauliflower rice
- For a completely vegan version, sub chicken sausage and shrimp for a plant-based sausage and chickpeas, or tofu. I love field roast vegan sausage (not a sponsored girlie…yet)
- A few other veggies that would be good in this mix are Swiss chard, kale, or even broccoli for added nutrition
- For less spice, reduce or omit the cayenne pepper and white pepper and replace with more black pepper according to taste. For more spice, add a few dashes of tabasco sauce to the mix before transferring the mixture to a baking dish
Gluten Free Creole Jambalaya
This spicy Creole Jambalaya with smoked andouille chicken sausage and jumbo wild-caught prawn is inspired by a time-tested family recipe, with a healthier spin. The addition of fresh spinach and asparagus, and the omission of pork make this a nourishing, and perfectly-seasoned complete meal for the whole fam to enjoy.
Ingredients
- 2.5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1.5 tsp salt
- .5 tsp black pepper
- 1.5 tsp white pepper
- 2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- .25 tsp sage
- 2 bay leaves
- 1.5 cups green bell pepper
- 1.5 cups onion
- 1 cup celery
- 1.5 tsp garlic minced
- 3/4 cup tomato sauce
- 1 lb diced tomato
- 2 cups rice white or jasmine
- 24-32 oz stock chicken or vegetable
- 1/2 cups chicken andouille sausage
- 1 lb shrimp peeled and deveined
- .5 green onion chopped
- 1 bunch asparagus chopped
- 2 cups kale chopped
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350. Oil or butter a 9 x 12 inch baking dish
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Combine dried spices (everything besides bay leaves) in a small bowl and set aside
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In a cast iron skillet or large skillet, warm olive oil over medium high heat. Add sausage and cook until crispy. About 3-4 minutes.
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Chop green bell pepper, celery and onion into bite-sized pieces. Add to skillet. Toss to evenly combine. Cook until onion is translucent. About 2 minutes.
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Add dried seasonings, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, minced garlic and stock to pan. Stir to combine. Lower heat to a medium-low.
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Add green vegetables, rice, shrimp and bay leaves. Stir to combine
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Transfer mixture to baking dish and cover with aluminum foil. Bake until rice is completely cooked. About one hour. Remove, uncover and allow to cool. If the rice is not cooking, you may need to add more stock during the cooking process, up to 4 cups or 32 oz total.