The classic Louisiana dish for a crowd! This is economical, delicious and cooks up easily. You can serve it as a main dish or as a side. This quantity is especially great for a party, buffet or potluck and it makes great leftovers!
My family lived in New Orleans, Louisiana for two years. I really enjoyed learning about cajun cooking and I was lucky enough to have some excellent teachers. This is my go-to Jambalaya recipe.
Jambalaya is a rice-based dish that is seasoned with the “holy trinity” of cajun cuisine: onion, green pepper and celery. “Holy Trinity” is to cajun cooking as “sofrito” (onion, celery, carrot) is to Italian cooking. It’s the core base of every savory dish.
I typically serve Jambalaya for our Mardi Gras feast along with King Cake – recipe here.
Jambalaya for a Crowd
The classic Louisiana dish for a crowd! This is economical, delicious and cooks up easily. You can serve it as a main dish or as a side. This quantity is especially great for a party, buffet or potluck and it makes great leftovers!
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1 onion peeled and chopped
- 8 cloves garlic peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 green bell peppers cored and chopped
- 1 red bell pepper cored and chopped
- 3 ribs celery sliced
- 1 pack Andouille sausage
- 4 cups uncooked rice
- 28 ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
- 48 ounce box of chicken broth (or 4 cups)
- 12 ounce bag frozen shrimp uncooked, tail off
- 2 Tbs lime juice or the juice of one whole lime
- 1 teaspoon Tony Chachere's cajun seasoning
- salt to taste
- parsley and/or cilantro as garnish
Instructions
- In a large electric skillet (see video), brown the Andouille sausage on a medium-high heat for 5-10 minutes, or until the sausage slices are crispy around the edges. Remove sausage from pan.
- Add the 1/3 cup olive oil and the onion, garlic, bell peppers and celery. Sautee at a medium high heat until cooked down – about ten minutes.
- Add the sausage back to the skillet and stir.
- Add the can of diced tomatoes with juice and the uncooked rice. Stir well.
- Add the chicken broth stir well and let simmer for about twenty minutes, on medium-low heat with the top on the skillet. Stir occasionally.
- When the rice is almost cooked through, add the frozen shrimp and stir well to make sure the shrimp is buried in the rice. The shrimp will cook in the hot rice. Cover and let cook until the shrimp are pink. If the rice still hasn't cooked through, add a cup of water and turn the heat back up to a medium-high. Stir while it sizzles. This will ensure that the rice is cooked as you like it
- Add the lime juice and stir. Season with the cajun seasoning and additional salt as needed. Garnish with parsley and/or cilantro.
Video
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
