How To Cook Jambalaya

How To Cook Jambalaya
Jambalaya is a classic Cajun dish that has its roots in Cajun rural history. Most often, jambalaya isn't really a recipe, but instead is a hodgepodge of ingredients that can be thrown together on a whim. Traditionally, those who cook jambalaya do often have favorite recipes, but it's also dished it's meant to use what's on hand, using leftovers and other ingredients, so that you can come up with a tasty dish all your own.


Jumble at parts are essential when it comes to how good jumble at properly, because they hold heat well and can be placed over an open fire if necessary, too. Because jambalaya is a one pot dish, it's very easy to make. It's similar to gumbo but includes rice along with the other ingredients, so that it cooks slowly, while the rice absorbs all the flavors of the other ingredients included.


Traditionally, the meaning of "jambalaya" comes from "jambon," the French word for "ham," combined with "a la" (French for "with" or "like") and "ya," African for "rice."


When you cook jambalaya, you cook it in one pot and toss everything in together so that the flavors have a chance to mix and become rich and hearty. Usually, jambalaya pots are made of cast iron; these are perfect for cooking jambalaya, because cast iron holds heat well so that jambalaya can be cooked over a cook stove or other heating element at a very low heat, all day.


There's no real rule in cooking jambalaya, except for one. Once you add the rice, don't stir it. If you don't stir it, you won't break up the rice grains and make them sticky. You can turn it, which is a much gentler way to stir the rice, more like folding ingredients in as you do with other types of cooking. Most people who cook jambalaya turn it just two or three times after they add the rice. Again, kept on very low heat and allow to simply meld all day, burning or scorching is usually not a problem.


When you turn the jambalaya after adding the rice, you scoop up contents from the bottom of the pot and bring them up to the surface, mixing evenly with other ingredients. You can use very large spoons or very large non-slotted spatulas to do the turning, depending on the size of the pot.


How do you cook a typical jambalaya recipe? Again, the true spirit of how to cook jambalaya is that you simply use what you have on hand, mixing it with spices, vegetables, and other ingredients along with rice to come up with a tasty dish all your own.


*For example, you could use bacon or ham (about a half a pound, diced), along with two cloves of garlic and a large onion, some chopped celery (two stalks), and a green bell pepper that's been cored and seeded, then chopped, as your main ingredients. Add these to your Jumblatt pot along with spices like thyme (about a third teaspoon, dry), some red pepper (about a teaspoon or to taste), some salt (about 2 teaspoons), and some bay leaf (1/8 teaspoon or one bay leaf, whole).


*Saute the meat in the pot until it begins to brown, add the vegetables including the garlic and celery, and saute until soft. Stir in the spices, and then add a 15-ounce can of tomatoes, diced.


*After that, stir in 2 cups of water and 8 ounce bottle of clam juice (or another cup of water if you don't prefer the taste of clams). Bring the mixture to a boil, turn the heat to low, and then add 11/2 cups of uncooked long grain rice. Let this slowly cook down until all the liquid has been absorbed into the rice. (Remember, simply "turn" the pot's contents two or three times during cooking, without stirring.)


*When liquid has been absorbed, you can add some raw, de-veined shrub (about a pound) and two tablespoons of raw parsley as a garnish if you wish; cook until shrimp is done, about six to seven minutes. Remove from heat and serve.


It's not hard to learn how to cook jambalaya, especially if you've got the right jambalaya pots to help with the process. Simply take what you've got on hand in terms of meat and vegetables, toss in some spices, experiment, and enjoy.

Welcome to The Jambalaya Pot, inside you will discover an amazing selection of low priced and excellent quality products, and help you understand just how to cook jambalaya.

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