New Orleans Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp
Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp
Prep 10 mins Cook 25 mins Eat 35 mins
I just can’t get enough of this Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp. I am usually pretty good about portion control, but there is no portion control when it comes to this Jambalaya. Honed over years of making this dish for different events like Mardi Gras, I have come to the conclusion that this is the best Fresh Food in a Flash version. Get it on the table quick after a day’s work.
The secret is the spiciness. I like to taste a fair amount of heat when I’m eating my Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp, but not to the point you need a fire hose! I’ve combined a pinch of cayenne with up to 1/2 teaspoon of hot Hungarian paprika. Use a 1/4 teaspoon to 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper if you have no hot Hungarian paprika. Choose your heat as you wish. Perhaps half a minced jalapeno without the seeds. Tonight, I made it with half of a long skinny pepper from my garden, that turned out to have a lot of heat in it. Generally the fresher the chile, the more the heat or the smaller the chile, the more the heat. You get to decide what your guests can handle.
What’s in this delicious Jambalaya?
Ingredients for Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp
Assemble delicious and healthy ingredients before cooking. We call it “mise en place”. Everything in it’s place. An onion, bell pepper, a large garlic clove, a chile and or ground cayenne, the tomatoes, rice, herbs and spices, the sausage and shrimp. and some chicken stock, using my favorite Better than Bouillon paste which you mix with water. But you can also take some home made chicken stock out of the freezer, which I did tonight. Click here to learn how to make fresh made chicken stock from your old bones, that I also stuff in my freezer.
Once you have all the ingredients together, dice the onion and the green or red bell pepper. Pop them in a flat skillet or brazier with a splash of oil. Cover and let them soften. Add in minced garlic and chile if you are using,
Choose your sausage. Andouille or ?
Add the sausage to the onion, bell pepper, chile and garlic.
Next add the sausage. I use Italian sausage, because I always have some in the freezer, ready to unthaw. Since it’s raw, I chop it up as it cooks. But this dish is from New Orleans, so if you want to be authentic, definitely get some Andouille sausage and slice it up before you add it, because it is smoked and precooked, at least in this country. There are so many great sausages now in the market, so use your favorite spicy sausage.
The sausage gets chopped up as it cooks.
A little side note about my personal experience ordering Andouille saucisson at a restaurant in France many years ago. I thought it was like the stuff from New Orleans, but when I consulted my French dictionary, it said it was a sausage of pig intestines. It was as described and inedible. Beware!
Add in the tomatoes, herbs and spices.
After the sausage has browned, add in the tomatoes, the thyme, bay leaf and spices. Give it a stir.
The chicken stock is added and heated up.
Add in the chicken stock and increase heat to a boil.
The last step is to add the rice to the mixture.
Then add the long grain rice and mix it in. Reduce the heat to low, cover and let it simmer. It will take about 15-20 minutes before the rice is al dente or with a tiny crunch to the tooth. You will need to stir and add in more liquid (stock or water) every 3-5 minutes, so that the rice does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
The Jambalaya has cooked until al dente after about 15 minutes.
After cooking the rice to al dente, about 15 minutes, add another half cup or more liquid, so it looks juicy. Nestle the shrimp into the rice and cover.
The shrimp are nestled into the rice toward the end of cooking.
Cover and cook until the shrimp turns red and the rice is just past al dente or tender to the tooth.
Need to make the Jambalaya ahead for a party?
I discovered a great cooking trick when I was preparing the Jambalaya ahead for a Mardi Gras party. I now use this method nearly every time I cook Jambalaya. After the rice is in the skillet for 5 minutes, turn off the heat and keep it covered. The rice will then absorb the liquid on its own. When you are ready to finish cooking, add another 1/2 to 1 cup of liquid, stir it into the mixture, add the shrimp nestled into the rice, cover and cook until the shrimp has turned red and the rice is just past al dente or tender to the tooth.
Delicious Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp can be made on a weeknight in only 35 minutes.
You are ready to show off your Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp. That first bite…mmm. YUMMY! A fantastic Fresh Food in a Flash dish.
Jambalaya with Sausage and Chicken
Another version I made tonight was Jambalaya with Sausage and Chicken. I didn’t have any shrimp, so I chopped up some chicken thighs and added them in with the sausage.
New Orleans Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp
Easy to make, this delicious one-dish meal is perfect for a busy week night. The secret is the spiciness. You can vary the heat with the sausage, cayenne and paprika or minced jalapeno chile. Use your favorite sausage or authentic Cajun Andouille. Slice the precooked sausage or remove the casings from any raw sausage, such as Italian.
2 Tablespoons canola oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 red or green bell pepper, diced
1 large clove garlic
1/2 seeded jalapeno or other chile, minced (Optional)
1/2 pound sausage (2 links) Italian or Andouille
1 can (15 oz) crushed tomatoes
3 cups + chicken stock
3 fresh thyme sprigs
2 Tablespoons parsley
1 bay leaf
1 pinch cayenne pepper (or more)
1/2 tsp paprika (hot Hungarian preferred)
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice
1 pound raw shrimp, deveined
2 Tablespoons cilantro or parsley to garnish
1. In a large skillet, cook onion and green pepper on low heat until onion is translucent. Add garlic, optional minced chile and then the sausage. If using Andouille, slice the sausage before adding. If using a raw sausage like Italian, remove the casing, chop it up as it cooks and cook until browned.
2. Add tomatoes,1 1/2 cups chicken stock, thyme sprigs, parsley, bay leaf, cayenne, paprika, salt and pepper.. Stir and cook on medium heat until boiling. Reduce heat to low, add rice, stir, cover and simmer for 15- 20 minutes. Stir and add more stock or water as needed every 3-5 minutes so the rice does not stick to the pan. Cook until rice is al dente.
3. Add shrimp and nestle into the rice with added stock or water to keep the mixture juicy. Cover and cook until shrimp is red and rice is tender. Garnish with cilantro or parsley leaves and serve.
Servings: 4 – 528 calories per serving
Jambalaya with Sausage and Shrimp
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons canola oil
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 red or green bell pepper diced
- 1 large clove garlic
- 1/2 seeded jalapeno or other chile minced (optional)
- 1/2 pound sausage 2 links Italian or Andouille
- 1 15 oz. can crushed tomatoes
- 3 cups + chicken stock
- 3 fresh thyme sprigs
- 2 Tablespoons parsley
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper or more
- 1/2 tsp paprika hot Hungarian preferred
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice
- 1 pound raw shrimp deveined
- 2 Tablespoons cilantro or parsley to garnish
Instructions
- In a large skillet, cook onion and green pepper on low heat until onion is translucent. Add garlic, optional minced chile and then the sausage. If using Andouille, slice the sausage before adding. If using a raw sausage like Italian, remove the casing, chop it up as it cooks and cook until browned.
- Add tomatoes,1 1/2 cups chicken stock, thyme sprigs, parsley, bay leaf, cayenne, paprika, salt and pepper.. Stir and cook on medium heat until boiling. Reduce heat to low, add rice, stir, cover and simmer for 15- 20 minutes. Stir and add more stock or water as needed every 3-5 minutes so the rice does not stick to the pan. Cook until rice is al dente.
- Add shrimp and nestle into the rice with added stock or water to keep the mixture juicy. Cover and cook until shrimp is red and rice is tender. Garnish with cilantro or parsley leaves and serve.
- ENJOY THIS RECIPE FROM FreshFoodinaFlash.com
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