Chicken Jambalaya Recipe | LaaLoosh (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to a good jambalaya? ›

Black pepper, cayenne pepper, bay leaves, thyme, oregano, and hot sauce are the backbone of a great jambalaya. You can also add in some tomato paste or tomato powder, which creates a little sweetness.

One of the biggest complaints when making jambalaya is that the rice ends up mushy. And there's two main culprits of this – choosing the wrong type of rice and over-stirring. For this recipe, you want long-grain white rice, like basmati or jasmine. Don't use short-grain rice.

A cajun jambalaya, I'm reliably informed, should be somewhat dry, even slightly browned on the bottom, which rules out the soupier, wetter texture of those creole versions using tomatoes (Oliver advises cooks to aim for a “porridgey” consistency).

PRO TIP: TURN OFF THE HEAT RIGHT BEFORE THE RICE APPEARS DONE. COVER THE POT AND LET SIT FOR A FEW MINUTES. THIS WILL INSURE THAT YOUR RICE DOESN'T TURN MUSHY.

At the heart of jambalaya is the “holy trinity,” the mixture of celery, bell pepper, and onion that serves as the base of a lot of New Orleans cuisine, as well as many French dishes.

Jambalaya (/ˌdʒæmbəˈlaɪə/ JAM-bə-LY-ə, /ˌdʒʌm-/ JUM-) is a savory rice dish of mixed origins that developed in the U.S. state of Louisiana apparently with African, Spanish, and French influences, consisting mainly of meat or seafood (or both), and vegetables mixed with rice and spices.

If you don't rinse it away, the starch creates a gluey film as the rice cooks. Rinse away the extra starch and the rice will be sticky enough to fluff up, but not too gummy. If you've been having trouble achieving the “just right” texture with your rice, try adding the rinsing step to your prep.

The "holy trinity" in Cajun cuisine and Louisiana Creole cuisine is the base for several dishes in the regional cuisines of Louisiana and consists of onions, bell peppers and celery. The preparation of Cajun/Creole dishes such as crawfish étouffée, gumbo, and jambalaya all start from this base.

Two main categories of jambalaya exist: Creole (or red) jambalaya, which is associated with the city of New Orleans and contains tomato, and Cajun (or brown) jambalaya, which contains no tomato and is more common in other parts of Louisiana. The recipe I'm focusing on here is the former, with tomato.

Do you need a roux for jambalaya? ›

Most jambalaya recipes don't call for thickeners like roux or okra, though some people use cornstarch as a thickener if the dish needs it.

Sauté the onion, bell pepper, celery, jalapeño and garlic until soft. Add rice, liquids and seasonings. Add in the uncooked rice, chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, Cajun/Creole seasoning, thyme, cayenne and bay leaf. Give everything a good stir.

Problem: Complicated to make, jambalaya is usually overcooked and underseasoned. The dish is an unappealing mixture of rubbery shrimp, dry chicken, and gummy rice bound in a thin, watery tomato base. Goal: We wanted fluffy rice with perfectly cooked and seasoned chicken, shrimp, and sausage.

If you don't add enough water, the rice ends up dry and crunchy. And if you don't cook the rice long enough, it gets soft on the outside but doesn't cook through.

The Holy Trinity is the Cajun and Creole counterpart to this trio, consisting of onion, celery, and rather than carrot, green bell peppers. Just like mirepoix, the Holy Trinity is one of the first things to hit the pan, acting as an aromatic base for dishes like Gumbo, Jambalaya, and Crawfish Étouffée.

One of the primary differences in Cajun jambalaya as opposed to the Creole variant is the absence of tomatoes. Instead, it relies on a dark roux (which is a cooked mixture of flour and fat) to achieve a deep, smoky flavor. Country meats like andouille sausage, tasso ham, or game meats take center stage.

Cajun jambalaya usually has a brown colour due to the meat dissolving in the broth. It also has a smokier flavour because of the meat being allowed to brown first.

Two main categories of jambalaya exist: Creole (or red) jambalaya, which is associated with the city of New Orleans and contains tomato, and Cajun (or brown) jambalaya, which contains no tomato and is more common in other parts of Louisiana. The recipe I'm focusing on here is the former, with tomato.