My sister-in-law introduced me to Jambalaya more than 30 years ago. She and her husband lived in Baton Rouge, Louisiana when my husband and I went to visit. While there she made this recipe. We loved it and soon it became a family favorite.
Tonight, I made it for the first time in probably 5 years. My oldest son and daughter, loved this dish and I made it for them regularly when they were little. The second set of children, did not like it so much, as I remember, too many vegetables. I did not make it as much since it is a little labor intensive. My second son, the one who does not like onions, said he has always liked Jambalaya. Once again, Mom's memory is not what it used to be.
The favorite part of the evening is when my oldest son walked into the house and said, "You are taking me back to my childhood!" Memories triggered by scent have some of the strongest emotional connections and appear more intense than other memory triggers.
Jambalaya
1 1/2 lbs. Hillshire Farms Smoked Sausage
4 tsp. Butter
1 lb. Chicken, cooked, deboned, and cubed
1 c. Onion, chopped
1 c. Green Bell Pepper, chopped
1 c. Celery, chopped
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. White Pepper
1 tsp. Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp. Chili Powder
2 Bay Leaves
1 8 oz. can Tomato Sauce
1 15 oz. Diced tomatoes
2 C. White Rice
2 1/2 C. Chicken Broth
Cut the sausage into small pieces and fry in a large pan. When the pieces are browned, spoon them into another bowl and leave the grease in the pan. Add butter and then add all the chopped vegetables.
The combination of onions, green bell peppers and celery is called the
Holy Trinity in Cajun cooking from Louisiana. I find that funny for some reason.
Add the spices halfway through cooking the vegetables. After the vegetables are tender, add the rice and cook for 5 minutes. Then add tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Add chicken, cooked sausage and chicken broth. Bring the dish to a boil and then put the lid on. Cook for 30-40 minutes on low until rice is cooked.
*I usually have cooked chicken on hand. I buy the double pack chicken friers at Costco. I put them in a large cooking pan with a lid. I wash them and put them breast down in the pan. I then add 4 chicken bouillon cubes for each chicken. I cook both chickens at the same time, so I use 8 cubes. Do not add water, but do put the lid on. Bake in a 350° oven for 3 hours. I bake my chickens at night, starting at 6:00 pm. I turn the oven off at 9:00 pm and leave the chicken in the oven. First thing in the morning, I take the pan out of the oven and debone the chicken. The pan will be filled with the most delightful chicken broth, which I put in a container and use for dishes like jambalaya or soup. The yield is 8-10 cups of chicken. I put them in Ziploc bags and write the date on them. We eat it for dinner, snacks, quesadillas, chicken pillows, Wild Rice Chicken Soup, Chicken Salad Croissants, Hawaiian Haystacks and any other delightful recipe you might have that uses cooked chicken.
