Shrimp Jambalaya

Shrimp Jambalaya 

First up for new recipes for my Mardi Gras feast is jambalaya which is a classic Louisiana rice dish. There a probably about as many different recipes for jambalaya as there are people that make it but it's base is meat, vegetables and rice and the rice is cooked in the same pot as everything else. One of the nice things about jambalaya is that you can pretty much do whatever you want with it; use whatever meat you want, use whatever vegetables you want, etc.

You start by cooking the non-seafood meat, add the holy trinity (onions, celery, pepper), followed by the broth, rice and seasonings and then you let it simmer until the rice has cooked and the sauce thickens before adding the seafood at the end. Jambalaya is definitely one tasty home cooking dish that is pure comfort food! 

A tasty Louisiana rice dish with andouille sausage and shrimp.

ingredients

• 1/2 pound shrimp peeled and deveined reserving the shells
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon butter or oil
• 1/2 pound andouille sausage, sliced
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoon creole seasoning
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup long grained rice
• salt, pepper and cayenne to taste
• 4 green onions, sliced
• hot sauce to taste

directions

1. Bring the chicken broth and shrimp shells to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until required later.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat, add the sausage and cook until browned on both sides, about 5-7 minutes.
3. Add the onion, pepper and celery and cook until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
4. Add the garlic and creole seasoning and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
5. Strain the shells from the broth, add the broth, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves and rice to the sausage and vegetables, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the rice is tender and the sauce has reduced and thickened to the desired thickness, about 20-40 minutes.
6. Add the shrimp and cook until cooked, about 3-5 minutes.
7. Season with salt, pepper and cayenne to taste and served topped with the green onions and hot sauce on the side.

Note: This recipe benefits from more simmer time so if you have the time simmer it for 40 minutes.

Recipe Source:closetcooking.com