My grandmother is a Louisiana girl. Shreveport, to be exact. When she came to California as a teen in the 1940s, she brought her southern recipes with her. I grew up enjoying Gumbo, Shrimp Etoufee, and homemade Jambalaya on a regular basis. Granny took the time to make her dishes from scratch, no Zatarain’s. Although I’ve had my fair share of box Jambalaya. But there’s just something about making a dish from scratch, with fresh ingredients. You can definitely taste the difference.

In the spirit of Fat Tuesday, I decided to create a Cajun dish with my Grandmother’s Louisiana roots in mind. Just because I’m not in New Orleans for Mardi Gras doesn’t mean I can’t celebrate in my own kitchen!

I basically remixed a Jambalaya recipe I found on All Recipes, and adapted it to suit my own tastes. I also had to change it to accommodate the items I had in my fridge, because a chick didn’t go grocery shopping. Lucky for me I always have chicken, shrimp, and smoked sausage on deck. The result is a simple, easy, and delicious stew-like dish. My version is a little bit healthier, since I use smoked turkey sausage in place of the andouille.

Serves 4. You can increase or decrease the proportions accordingly.

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb  skinless, boneless chicken breast – cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1/2 lb smoked turkey sausage, sliced
• 1 can diced tomatoes with juice
• 1/3 large onion, chopped
• 1/3 large green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/3 cup chopped celery
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/3 cup chicken broth or water
• 2 tsp Cajun seasoning (salt, pepper, cayenne, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, Italian seasoning)
• 1/2 lb frozen cooked shrimp without tails

Directions

• Sautee veggies until they start to sweat. Add the chicken and smoked sausage.
• Cook until the chicken is no longer pink, about 3 – 4 minutes. Add the Cajun seasoning, canned tomatoes with juice, and chicken brother or water. Stir, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and let cook for 20 minutes.
• After 20 minutes, add the shrimp. If using cooked shrimp, let it cook for 5 more minutes. If using raw, let it cook for 10 more minutes.
• Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
• Serve over hot white rice.

Image: Woman’s Day

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