Jambalaya is a Louisiana French word that means “jumbled” or “mixed up”, and I have no doubt that the philosophy and heart of this recipe come from a similar place to paella, kedgeree and risotto. Originally, any Louisiana critter unlucky enough to get caught would have gone into this: rabbit, duck, squirrel, frog, alligator, you name it. And, similarly, you can adapt it to whatever your butcher or fishmonger happens to have. Go cheaper by using things such as frozen prawns and chicken livers, or more expensive by including lobster or crab. I used an incredible local smoked sausage called andouille, but fresh chorizo or any other smoked sausage would work just as well.
This dish makes me happy every time I eat it. And if more people than expected turn up for dinner, just add a bit of extra rice.
Serves 8-10
4 chicken thighs, skin on, preferably free-range or organic
4 chicken drumsticks, skin on, preferably free-range or organic
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Cayenne pepper
Olive oil
300g smoked sausage, such as andouille or fresh chorizo, skin removed, cut into 1cm slices
1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 green pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
1 red pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
4 sticks of celery, trimmed and roughly chopped
4 fresh bay leaves
4 sprigs of fresh thyme
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
1-2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
1½ litres chicken stock, preferably organic
700g long-grain rice
16-20 raw king prawns, peeled and deveined
1 handful of fresh curly parsley
Season the chicken with salt, pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Pour a couple of lugs of oil into a large casserole-type pan and brown the chicken pieces and sliced sausage over a medium heat. After 5 minutes, once nicely browned on all sides, add your onion, peppers and celery as well as your bay, thyme and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir, then fry on a medium heat for 10-12 minutes, stirring every now and again. It’s important to control the heat of the pan: you don’t want it to be so slow nothing’s happening, or so fast that things are catching and burning — you want a steady, solid heat.
Once the veg have softened, add your garlic and chillies, stir around for a minute, then stir in the tinned tomatoes and chicken stock. Bring everything to the boil, then turn the heat down, pop the lid on and simmer for 25-30 minutes. When you can pull the meat off the bone and shred it easily, the chicken is ready. Feel free to remove the bones at this point if you like, then add your rice. Give it all a good stir, then put the lid on. Stir every few minutes, scraping the goodness off the bottom of the pan as you go. Let it cook for about 15-20 minutes until the rice is perfectly cooked. Stir in the prawns and, if it needs it, add enough water to make it a kind of porridgey consistency. Pop the lid back on and cook for another 3-4 minutes while you chop your parsley. Stir the parsley through and serve on a lovely big platter. This dish is great with a lemony green salad.
This dish makes me happy every time I eat it. And if more people than expected turn up for dinner, just add a bit of extra rice.
Serves 8-10
4 chicken thighs, skin on, preferably free-range or organic
4 chicken drumsticks, skin on, preferably free-range or organic
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Cayenne pepper
Olive oil
300g smoked sausage, such as andouille or fresh chorizo, skin removed, cut into 1cm slices
1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 green pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
1 red pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
4 sticks of celery, trimmed and roughly chopped
4 fresh bay leaves
4 sprigs of fresh thyme
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
1-2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
1½ litres chicken stock, preferably organic
700g long-grain rice
16-20 raw king prawns, peeled and deveined
1 handful of fresh curly parsley
Season the chicken with salt, pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Pour a couple of lugs of oil into a large casserole-type pan and brown the chicken pieces and sliced sausage over a medium heat. After 5 minutes, once nicely browned on all sides, add your onion, peppers and celery as well as your bay, thyme and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir, then fry on a medium heat for 10-12 minutes, stirring every now and again. It’s important to control the heat of the pan: you don’t want it to be so slow nothing’s happening, or so fast that things are catching and burning — you want a steady, solid heat.
Once the veg have softened, add your garlic and chillies, stir around for a minute, then stir in the tinned tomatoes and chicken stock. Bring everything to the boil, then turn the heat down, pop the lid on and simmer for 25-30 minutes. When you can pull the meat off the bone and shred it easily, the chicken is ready. Feel free to remove the bones at this point if you like, then add your rice. Give it all a good stir, then put the lid on. Stir every few minutes, scraping the goodness off the bottom of the pan as you go. Let it cook for about 15-20 minutes until the rice is perfectly cooked. Stir in the prawns and, if it needs it, add enough water to make it a kind of porridgey consistency. Pop the lid back on and cook for another 3-4 minutes while you chop your parsley. Stir the parsley through and serve on a lovely big platter. This dish is great with a lemony green salad.