Jambalaya Recipe – Easy, tasty, one pot recipe for Jambalaya prepared with rice, chicken, shrimp, and sausages. Whip up this Southern favorite in just 30 minutes and get ready for a Mardi Gras dinner that the whole family will love!
Table of Contents
Jambalaya is my go-to winter stew! During the winter season, I make this Jambalaya recipe about once a month. It’s easy, hearty, and it takes me about 40 minutes to put it all together. Just chop a few vegetables, devein some shrimp, place all things in a dutch oven and wait for the warm and spicy aroma to fill the house.
WHAT IS JAMBALAYA
Jambalaya is a very popular dish that has Spanish and French influence. It’s prepared with chicken, shrimp, sausages, and rice – or a variation of that – and it is comfort food at its best. Jambalaya is one of the easiest one-pot meals you can put together, even on a busy weeknight.
JAMBALAYA INGREDIENTS
We will need:
- onions
- bell peppers
- celery
- garlic
- chicken
- seasonings
- andouille sausage
- diced tomatoes
- tomato paste
- chicken stock
- rice
- shrimp
- To make Jambalaya, we will first start with sauteeing the onion, bell peppers, celery, and garlic in a large dutch oven.
- Next, we are going to cut up chicken breasts into cubes, season with paprika and oregano, and add it to the pot to cook until browned.
- Sliced andouille sausage goes in next, followed by tomatoes and tomato paste, as well as a teaspoon of cajun seasoning, plus chicken stock and rice.
- All of that will need to simmer for about 20 minutes before we finally stir in the shrimp, let cook for a few minutes, and then serve.
It’s basically a pot of rice loaded with meats, seafood, tomatoes, and more flavors and textures than you thought you could handle in just one meal.
For a complete dinner, serve this with some crusty bread, a green salad, and a glass of your best wine.
MORE CAJUN INSPIRED RECIPES:
- Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
- Sheet Pan Andouille Sausage with Potatoes and Veggies
- Slow Cooker Chicken and Rice Recipe
- Chicken, Rice and Vegetable Skillet
- Mom’s One-Skillet Sausage and Rice
ENJOY!
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TOOLS AND INGREDIENTS USED IN THIS RECIPE
Jambalaya Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 celery ribs, diced
- 2 bell peppers, diced (you can also use red, green, yellow, etc.)
- salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
- 1/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 6 ounces andouille sausage, sliced into ¼-inch rounds
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cups low-sodium fat free chicken broth
- 1 (14.5-oz can) diced tomatoes
- 1 cup long grain rice
- 1 teaspoon cajun seasoning, or to taste,
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced, for garnish
- dried parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven heat olive oil over medium heat.
- Add onions, celery, and bell peppers and season with salt and pepper.
- Cook for 4 minutes, or until just tender. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in chicken and add sweet paprika and oregano.
- Cook for 5 minutes, or until chicken is browned on all sides.
- Stir in prepared sausage and tomato paste; cook for 1 minute.
- Add chicken broth, crushed tomatoes, rice and cajun seasoning.
- Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat to medium low and cover the pot with a lid.
- Cook for 20 minutes, or until rice is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Add the shrimp and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until shrimp is pink and cooked through.
- Remove from heat.
- Garnish with sliced green onions and dried parsley.
- Serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
There are no tomatoes in jambalaya. Trust me; I’m a native of the Jambalaya Capital of the World,
If you love this particular recipe, great. Just don’t call it jambalaya.
Can you share a proper jambalaya recipe?
I have always wanted to try it , ever since watching the princess and the frog LOL!!
😂😂😂
You know what they say…everyone has an opinion.
I’ve had plenty of jambalaya with tomatoes and plenty without. Anyone can put their own spin on it. 🤦🏻♀️
What if I don’t have celery or celery salt?
I guess you could make the jambalaya without it, but the celery does add to the overall taste and texture.
Made this tonight, and my hubby loved it! I used all colors of peppers and also added 1/2 tsp of chipotle pepper, and 1 tbsp of smoked paprika, to give it heat and smoke.
Great recipe, and easy to make.
I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Absolutely amazing!!! Made this for me and my family and everyone loved it!! Note my kids are very picky and they all loved it… only thing I did different was add all the colors of bell peppers to give it more color but followed as is… thank you so much for this recipe one of my favorites so far
I’m very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
I made it last night, it was delicious and everyone loved it. I substituted the sausage with hot Italian, because that was what I had on hand and stuck true to the rest of the recipe. Simple comfort food.
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Great recipe, it’s been added to my usual rotation because my better half LOVES it. I make my own Cajun seasoning mix for it because the store bought ones contain far too much salt. Thanks for a tasty but super quick and easy dinner idea!
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
This is an amazing recipe that everyone can put their own spin on. I use old bay to season my chicken. Use chicken andouille sausage… It’s so good!
The only improvement I would make is to fry my smoked sausage first and get a crustiness to it. I also added a large diced jalapeño. Great recipe!
OMG! My family loved this recipe. They asked me to add this to the regular favourites! Thanks for sharing, Katerina!
I am so happy to hear that!! I’m very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
We all loved your version of Jambalaya, I will make it again. But 10 minutes prep time? How many people did you have prepping?
I switched out the andouille sausage for smoked gouda chicken sausage and it brought the points down to 3 on purple!
That sounds delicious! 🙌
I cooked the rice separately and used beef broth instead of chicken broth. I also used creole seasoning instead of Cajun seasoning. It was delicious
I tried this recipe because it looked so good in the photo. My husband loved it and I will definitely make it again. Thank you.
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂