Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

Laisses les bons temps rouler!  Let the good times roll!

I am neither Cajun nor am I Catholic.  But I do appreciate good food and good times, so this is my celebration of Mardi Gras.  Today is Fat Tuesday, the last day of Carnival, and the day before Ash Wednesday which begins Lent.  Lent is the period of fasting and prayer between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday.

Jambalaya is a rice dish with Andouille sausage, and your choice of chicken or seafood. Since nobody in my house eats seafood, I made my Jambalaya with chicken.  You could however substitute any of the following for the chicken: shrimp, crawfish, clams, mussels, or whatever you like.

Of course, no Cajun meal would be complete without the obligatory Beignets, which is the French/Cajun version of a donut. Tonight, Carol is making the Beignets, and is using Paula Deen's French Quarter Beignets recipe.  I saved plenty of room to go a little crazy!  So as they say in N'awlins, laisses les bons temps rouler!

3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
1 lb Andouille sausage, sliced 1/4" thick on the bias
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
2 tablespoons Emeril's Essence Creole Seasoning, divided
1 onion, diced
2 ribs celery diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups long grain rice
1 14.5 ounce can petite diced tomatoes
3 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 scallions, finely sliced



In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat.  Add the Andouille sausage and cook stirring until the sausage starts to brown and gives the oil a slight reddish color.  Remove from pan and set aside.



Season the chicken with 1 tablespoon of the Cajun seasoning.  Add to the Dutch oven and cook stirring until the chicken is no longer pink on the outside.  It will not be cooked through at this point.  Remove and set aside with the sausage.



Add the onion, celery, bell peppers, and additional tablespoon Cajun seasoning to the Dutch oven.  Cook and stir until vegetables are softened and nearly cooked, about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute or two.




Add the rice and cook stirring constantly so the rice does not burn until the rice is toasted slightly, about 2 minutes.  



Add the tomatoes, chicken, and sausage and stir.



Add the chicken stock and stir it all together. 



Bring to a boil, then cover with a tight fitting lid and reduce heat to lowest setting on your stove.  Set a timer for 20 minutes and do not lift the lid.  After 20 minutes, remove the lid and stir gently with the tines of a fork. Replace the lid and cook covered for 10 minutes more.

After ten minutes, turn off the heat and let rest for 10 minutes.

Turn out into serving dish and garnish with sliced scallions.

Bunny Chow

In Durban, South Africa, you can get a bunny chow at nearly every take-away in the city. If there is any street food that Durban is known for, it is bunny chow.  And contrary to the name, no bunny rabbits are used in this dish. 

It is a hollowed out loaf of government bread into which a curry stew of meat or beans and potatoes is placed. During apartheid non-whites could not go into restaurants to get food for their lunches.  But the restaurants could serve them from a window. Since Durban has the largest Indian population outside of India, curries are very popular in Durban.  The problem still remained though of how to serve the curry since disposable packaging was not widely available at the beginning of the apartheid era.  So, it was discovered that if you hollowed out a loaf of government bread, it would hold the curry nicely inside.  Then it was wrapped in newspaper for the workers to take with them.

To order, you simply ask for the size and type of meat without using the term Bunny Chow. For instance, if you ordered a quarter mutton, you would receive a quarter loaf of bread with mutton curry inside.

To truly experience a bunny, you must order and eat as the workers did in Durban by getting your bunny wrapped in newspaper and sitting on the curb of a side street or at a park bench. Using your hands, you tear off chunks of bread and use it as a utensil to grab chunks of meat and potatoes to eat while the bread absorbs most of the gravy.

Here in the US, we don't have "government" bread, so the next best thing is a good loaf of homemade white bread.  Gold Medal Classic White Bread is a good recipe.



Here is the curry recipe:

½ cup ghee, butter, or vegetable oil

2 onions, diced

6-8 cloves garlic, smashed & chopped

2” knob of ginger root, skin removed, smashed & finely chopped

4 Tablespoons Pakco Pure Roasted Masala*, or other good curry powder

2.5 lbs meat, cut into 1” chunks

1 14.5oz can petite diced tomatoes

2-3 teaspoons salt, or to taste

4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1.            Add ghee to a Dutch oven or heavy bottomed pan and heat over medium heat.  Add onions and cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook for a further 2-3 minutes until garlic softens.

2.            Add Pakco Pure Roasted Masala to onions in pan and stir to mix well.  Continue to cook for 1-2 minutes over medium-low heat until spices are fragrant.  Add meat chunks and turn to coat in the onions and spices. 

3.            Add the tomatoes, and salt.  Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to medium low to maintain a low simmer.  Cover and let simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Do not let the meat burn or stick to the pan.

4.            Add the potatoes.  Stir to mix, then recover the pot and continue to simmer until the potatoes are fork tender.

5.            Remove the lid and if the sauce is too liquid, bring back to a boil to reduce the liquid to desired consistency, constantly stirring to prevent burning.  The sauce should be of a stew-like consistency.

6.            Remove from heat and let sit about 5 minutes before serving.  Serve with basmati rice or in a hollowed out loaf of bread or bread bowl to make a bunny chow.

*Pakco Pure Roasted Masala can be ordered from African Hut at http://www.africanhut.com/product.asp?id=63

**You can use beef, lamb (or mutton), chicken, or goat.