Crab Jambalaya, Now with Andouille

Yvonne — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 04:07:27 +0000

Active prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 25-30 mins
Serves: 4

Someone from Louisiana freaked out (nicely) at my use of kielbasa in jambalaya and strongly suggested that I try it with andouille for proper Cajun eating. So I did!

Verdict: yum. Still yum after a comedy of errors during the cooking. Don’t forget to add the garlic until the end! I did also make a couple (intentional) adjustments to the recipe, re-posted below.

Andouille is spicy, so if you don’t have much of a heat tolerance you may still want to go with kielbasa and optionally heat it up with Tabasco to taste.

Crab & Andouille Jambalaya
Adapted from the 2009 Food & Wine Cookbook

1/4 c. olive oil
12 oz. andouille sausage, quartered lengthwise and cut into 3/4-in chunks
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 t. Old Bay seasoning
1 1/4 c. long-grain white rice
1 1/2 c. low-sodium chicken stock
1 1/2 c. water
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
15-16 oz. lump crab meat
3 scallions, chopped

Heat olive oil in a medium-sized Dutch oven until shimmering, but not smoking. Lightly brown andouille over high heat, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Remove andouille with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add onion, red bell pepper, celery, and garlic. Cover and cook until soft, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes.

Add Old Bay, rice, and andouille and cook, stirring occasionally, until rice is opaque, about 2 minutes. Add chicken stock, water, and thyme. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir once to combine. Bring everything to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer until rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed, 15-20 minutes.

Fluff rice and fold in crab and scallions. Let stand for a few minutes until the crab heats through.

If desired, pass some Tabasco sauce at the table.

I’m a bit behind on blogging this week; got laid pretty flat by mono’s diminuitive second cousin. Stay tuned—posting will be rapid-fire this weekend as I catch up!

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Crab & Kielbasa Jambalaya

Yvonne — Fri, 22 May 2009 02:08:03 +0000

Active prep time: 20 mins, less if you’re faster with a knife than I am
Cook time: 25 mins
Serves: 4

The color in the above photo is a bit wonky and no amount of color-correcting seems to make it right, but take my word for it: this offering from the 2009 Food & Wine Cookbook is amazingly delicious.

The original recipe calls for andouille but suggests kielbasa as an alternative. Since I love kielbasa (even more than bratwurst, which I’m pretty sure is blasphemy in my native Wisconsin), I went straight for my favorite U-shaped sausage.

As you can see from the photos, I lack a proper enameled cast-iron Dutch oven so I just used our biggest non-stick pot. I feel like having a good Dutch oven will make a noticeable difference in this recipe, both during the browning of the sausage (mmm…delicious brown bits) and in how fast the rice cooks.

Crab & Kielbasa Jambalaya
Adapted from the 2009 Food & Wine Cookbook

1/4 c. olive oil
16 oz. kielbasa, quartered lengthwise and cut into 3/4-in chunks
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 t. Old Bay seasoning
1 1/4 c. long-grain white rice
1 1/2 c. low-sodium chicken stock
1 1/2 c. water
Heaping 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
8 oz. lump crab meat
3 scallions, chopped

Heat olive oil in a medium-sized Dutch oven. Lightly brown kielbasa over high heat, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Remove kielbasa with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add onion, red bell pepper, celery, and garlic. Cover and cook until soft, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes.

Add Old Bay, rice, and kielbasa and cook, stirring occasionally, until rice is opaque, about 2 minutes. Add chicken stock, water, and thyme. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir once to combine. Bring everything to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer until rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.

Fluff rice and fold in crab and scallions. Let stand for a few minutes until the crab heats through.

Pass some Tabasco sauce at the table.

When I make this again, I’ll probably use close to double the amount of crab meat. And you should definitely splurge on the good crab for this.

Be careful not to eat too much, like I did. Hah.

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Gustatory Circuit » Cajun Cuisine

Crab Jambalaya, Now with Andouille

Crab & Kielbasa Jambalaya