Fat Tuesday Jambalaya

What a great week for holidays. I love celebrating for any reason so Mardi Gras and Valentine's Day in one week is good news for me. Added bonus: both holidays center around food (at least in my book). I have never tried to make jambalaya before, and to be honest, it kind of intimidated me. I thought it was like chili where everyone has their fave recipe, which requires hours of cook time. False. With a little help from my girl Martha, I whipped up a quick and authentic tasting jambalaya. I'm not claiming to be John Besh, but it was delicious.

Healthy?

Start by seasoning your chicken breasts with salt and pepper and heating the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Don't be scared by the amount of oil. You're basically poaching the chicken breasts and using the leftover oil for your veggies. Yum. While the chicken is cooking, cut the veggies.

Magic

Remove the chicken breasts from the pot, and cut into bite-sized chunks. Add the veggies, sausage and garlic to the pot (specific cooking times below). If you have never used a garlic mincer it will save your life. The pre-minced stuff in the jar just doesn't do it for me and getting such a fine texture chopping by hand is exhausting. Problem solved.

Starting to smell gooood

Stir in the stock, Old Bay, tomatoes and water, and bring to a boil. Add the rice and chicken, simmer for a little bit, and remove from the heat. Martha said you 

should have jambalaya in 30-35 minutes, but I found my rice took closer to an hour to cook all the way. Just keep an eye on it.

Voila!

Fat Tuesday Jambalaya
Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

• 3 celery stalks, finely chopped

• 1 medium onion, finely chopped

• 1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped

• 1 pound andouille sausage, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock

• 3/4 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

• 1 can (14 ounces) crushed tomatoes with juice

• 1 cup long-grain rice
• 
  

Directions:

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Cut into 3/4-inch pieces; set aside.

Add vegetables to pot. Cook, stirring, 5 minutes. Add sausage; cook 3 minutes. Add garlic; cook 1 minute. Stir in stock, Old Bay, tomatoes and 1/2 cup water; bring to a boil. Add rice and chicken. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes. Cover; remove from heat. Let stand until rice is tender and liquid is mostly absorbed, 45 to 60 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and hot sauce of your choice.

[Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart]

Don't forget the dessert!