Jambalaya
A classic with a sticky twist
Before I met my boyfriend, I had no idea what New Orleans food tasted like. Even after experiencing it, i'm not sure I (or maybe anyone) can adequately describe it unless you taste the warm, explosive spices for yourself. Without giving you a palette description, Cajun food tastes like a warm hug from your great-great-grandmother. It feels new and familiar all at the same time. Though these flavors are near impossible to replicate, I tried to bring of little bit of the southern warmth to our frigid New York apartment this weekend.
Jambalaya is perhaps the most notorious Cajun dish, excluding gumbo. It's a slightly spicy dry rice dish cooked together with onions, tomatoes, sausage, seafood, and spices. To give this classic dish a little twist, I substituted the traditional white rice for Arborio rice, giving it a nice chewy texture, similar to pasta. I know this might sound shocking, but you might not want to go back to any other rice after trying this dish.
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp of butter
- 2 Tbsp of flour
- 1 onion (diced)
- 1 garlic clove (minced)
- 1 stock of celery (chopped)
- 2 links of Andoille sausage thinly sliced (8 oz.)
- 1 16 oz. can of diced tomatoes
- 1 c. of Arborio rice (rinsed)
- 1 1/2 c. of hot chicken broth
- 1 tsp of dried oregano
- 1 lb of devined and peeled raw shrimp
- 1 Tbsp of chopped green onion
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Prep the vegetables and Andoille sausage: dicing the onion and celery, mincing the garlic, and thinly slicing the sausage. Also now is a good time to pre-wash the Arborio rice. In a large bowl, rinse the rice with water for a total of 5 times. I try to rinse rice before cooking to remove as much arsenic as I can. If rice is not prewashed, arsenic from the packaged rice can be absorbed into the grains while cooking.
Additionally, as a practice I try to mince garlic and let it sit out in room temp. for 10-15 minutes before I cook it to promote the formation of allicin, a compound linked to health benefits. (obviously correlation does not equal causation and more research needs to be conducted to determine what the links between garlic and health are...etc) - In a large dutch oven, create a Roux using the butter and flour. Melt the butter and stir in the flour until the sauce thickens to a nice brown color.
(Stir the sauce constantly to prevent burning)
- When the roux is a nice brown (and starts to smell amazing) add in the onions and garlic. Cook until the onions become translucent. This should all be done on med-high heat and should take around 3-5 minutes.
- Add in the can of diced tomatoes, celery, sliced Andoille sausage, pre-washed Arborio rice, chicken stock, and oregano. Try and submerge all the rice floating to the top into the liquid to prevent uncooked rice.
I also added in some Cayenne (Not Too) Hot Sauce for some Cajun flavoring. Under full transparency, I will proudly inform you that my boyfriend is the owner of this hot sauce. You can purchase yours here.
- Bring the mixture to a boil and quickly reduce the temperature to a simmer. Leave the mixture to simmer on medium - medium-high heat for 15-20 minutes. At around 10 minutes, try to mix the rice around.
- Cook until the rice is a nice chewy texture, with just a hint of an "al dente" bite.
If you taste grainy or powdery rice chunks, it is not fully cooked yet. If you find that your rice is already dry, you can add a little dash of chicken stock to help cook the rice a little more.
- At this point you should add the shrimp and green onions. Cook them for 3-5 minutes (or until pink) on each side within the mixture. Try not to overcook the shrimp as they will taste rubbery and lose its flavor.
- Plate your dish, and enjoy!
If you're ever craving some New Orleans food or just feeling adventurous, give this recipe a try!
