Jambalaya with Shrimp and Andouille Sausage

Although I've never been to Louisiana, I absolutely love their food. Given that I've only tried some of their most popular dishes such as gumbo and jambalaya, I appreciate the deep flavors and cooking techniques that are used in their cuisine. I can only imagine just how fantastic these dishes are in Louisiana.

Jambalaya with Shrimp and Andouille Sausage

Recipe from Cooking Light

Cooking time: 40 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup chopped red bell pepper

1 tbsp minced garlic

6 oz andouille sausage, sliced

1 cup uncooked long-grain white rice

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp garlic salt

1 bay leaf

2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

3/4 cup water

1 tbsp tomato paste

1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce

1 (14.5 oz) can no salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained

1/2 lb peeled and deveined medium shrimp

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, chopped bell pepper, minced garlic, and sausage; saute 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
2. Add rice and the next 7 ingredients (through bay leaf); cook 2 minutes. Add broth,water, tomato paste, hot pepper sauce, and diced tomatoes; bring to a bowl. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes. Add shrimp; cook 5 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Stir in parsley. 

Nutritional Analysis:
per serving (1 1/2 cups): 426 calories, 12.7g fat (3.9g saturated, 1.0g polyunsaturated, 2.8g monounsaturated), 52.7g carbohydrates, 4.9g fiber, 25g protein 

**Helpful tips and common mistakes

This jambalaya is quick to prepare, but there are extra steps you can take to make it ready in even less time. For instance, purchase already peeled and deveined shrimp so you don't have to prepare them. When you are sauteing the onion, bell pepper, garlic and sausage, gather the rest of your ingredients. Measure out the water, chicken broth, and seasonings so you can quickly add them when it is time.

Since we mostly use calrose white rice in our lunches here at work, I used the calrose for this jambalaya as well. Calrose rice is a medium grain as opposed to the long grain rice for the recipe. Since it is a medium grain, it is a much stickier rice and thus resulted in a more wet jambalaya. It also requires less liquid so I omitted the water and only added the chicken stock amount. 

When you are ready to add the shrimp, mix in the shrimp with the rice. When the jambalaya is close to being finished, there is a chance that the bottom of the pan will burn. Make sure your heat is on low and give the jambalaya a good stir to prevent it from burning. 

You can also choose to add other proteins to this dish. I had extra basa fish so I added large chunks to the jambalaya. I have also made this dish with the addition of mussels and clams.

This jambalaya sure is tasty! It is a hearty bowl of a rice stew filled with shrimp and sausage. No salt is needed since the sausages provide the saltiness; everything is well balanced from the earthiness of the dried herbs to the sweetness of the shrimp to the tartness of the tomatoes.We served our lunch with a side of corn on the cob. Making this dish only makes me yearn to go to Louisiana even more.