Dad's Leftovers Jambalaya
This is how I will be using up the Christmas leftovers - and it's so good that I've made it during the rest of the year as well ♡
This is a free post for all subscribers. If you enjoy it, help me spread the word about the newsletter by sharing it. If you’re able to become a paid subscriber (for around £1.50 per week), you’ll get access to all the newsletters + extra content + you’ll be able to comment on posts and join in the conversation.
Also, this email is long so your email provider may truncate it. Click ‘read entire message’ to make sure you can read all of it. Or read the web version of this Substack.
Hello lovely people,
We’re so close to Christmas, that for this week, I thought I’d share a really useful recipe - one that might help you clear some space in the post-Christmas bulging fridge whilst also tasting utterly delicious. A perfect dinner for eating on the sofa with a great, festive film ♡
My Dad and I never had compatible cooking styles. He liked a long, complex recipe with multiple stages and numerous ingredients; I have always preferred a simple approach in the kitchen where I strip out all the unnecessary fuss and end up with a dish screaming high impact, low effort. We were never drawn to creating the same dishes, so on Boxing Day last year, it was a lovely surprise to discover that we had both cooked exactly the same thing - Felicity Cloake’s Leftovers Jambalaya from that same day’s Guardian. It was well received in both homes and true to style, he had stuck religiously to the recipe whereas I had somewhat wandered from the original. My Dad passed away in June and although this is most definitely not his own recipe (we have Felicity to thank for that) it will always make me feel as though he is with me when I cook this tweaked version of my own ♡
The clue is in the name. This Leftovers Jambalaya is a one-pot rice dish that celebrates leftovers, particularly those of the meaty variety but is also peppered with enough vegetables to make it feel as though you are getting the best of everything. I cooked it in a regular-sized Le Creuset with a well-fitting lid. The lid is important and having a fairly heavy base to the pan is also helpful to avoid any sticking. Is this meal a ‘looker’? Not massively, I’d say but it is so comforting and tasty that, regardless, I feel confident it will quickly become a much-requested family favourite.♡
What is jambalaya?
This rice dish is Cajun/Creole in origin - similar to a paella but using meat and vegetables rather than fish and seafood, as well as cayenne pepper rather than saffron. It’s a dish that appears in Spanish, French and New Orleans cuisines where everyone has their own regional twist. My focus is on making this dish as easy and as flavourful as possible while balancing the spice level to ensure that everyone in the family is happy. As such, it is more delicious than it is authentic! ♡
This is a dish that hugely lends itself to getting everything chopped and prepared beforehand, which in turn means that I get to take a satisfying photo of everything present, correct and ready to go!
Spices – the spice mix is simple; smoked paprika, cayenne pepper and dried thyme. I have used less cayenne pepper than in the original recipe (and omitted the addition of Tabasco, which I felt was more suited to being served on the side).
Vegetables – the traditional jambalaya vegetables are onion, celery and green pepper. I prefer the flavour with a sweeter pepper, so have used a yellow one instead. Also, I have made it with and without the celery (I don’t have it in the fridge that often) and it was good both ways. There is garlic in the recipe (apologies - I missed it from the photo) and spring onions; we will use the white part in the main recipe and the green part for garnish. I have added some halved cherry tomatoes into the dish with the meat for colour and freshness - they are not essential.
Stock – I always have a mountain of chicken stock in the freezer and it came in handy here. Powdered stock made up to the quantity of liquid would also be fine.
Rice – I used regular Basmati rice.
Meat – my fridge always contains some meat from a rotisserie chicken and that’s what I’ve used here. I’m a fan of having cooked sausages in the freezer and they were handy for this recipe. At Christmas, leftover turkey would be the obvious way to go and in theory, slicing up leftover Pigs in Blankets would work well, but surely they always get hoovered up in a flash!
Garnish – garnish really does work magic and the aesthetics of this dish are hugely elevated by a sprinkling of green before serving. Parsley and the green part of the spring onions really do the trick.
As the existence of leftovers is key to this dish, it feels important to highlight that there are all sorts of possible ingredient substitutions to aid a fridge clearout -
Vegetables - switch to red or green peppers; replace the celery with fennel
Meat - chorizo would be delicious, as would veggie sausages, seafood, pieces of gammon or roasted vegetables. Note - all of these meat substitutions should be fully pre-cooked.
Stock - vegetable stock would be a great substitute
You can prepare so much of this dish in advance – that when you come to do the cooking, all the hard work is already done. This means that if dinner time is busy and/or stressful you can be kind to your future self by planning ahead. I’m a fan of that strategy. ♡
Much of the cooking time is ‘hands-off’ - so you can chat, socialise, help with homework, clear up the mess of the day etc while the magic is happening.
You can also cook it in advance - sometimes I do this and it actually stands up well (without getting dry and stodgy). I would say that it’s at its peak when just cooked but you’re unlikely to notice a huge difference.
It is a genuine one-pot dinner - therefore less washing up!
It is deliciously tasty – need I say more …
It appeals across the generations – easing off on the cayenne pepper and instead serving it with Tabasco (or my favourite Nando’s sauce) on the side means that this dish could work for the whole family from toddlers, through teenagers, to grandparents, regardless of spice tolerance.
The leftovers are wonderful for lunch the next day.
This is not a recipe to be saved away for the festive season. In fact, it’s worth planning to have some leftovers just so that you can cook it! Try this version of Dad’s Leftovers Jambalaya and you might very well be hooked.♡
Dad’s Leftovers Jambalaya
Serves 2-3
Preparation - 30 mins
Cook - 50 mins
Ingredients
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon salt
½ onion, finely chopped
1 stick celery, finely chopped
½ yellow pepper, finely chopped
2 spring onions, finely chopped (keeping the green and white parts separate)
1 large or 2 small garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons olive oil
650 ml (22 floz) chicken stock
150g (5oz) Basmati rice
200g (7oz) cooked chicken, chopped into bite-sized pieces
50g (2oz) cooked sausage, chopped into bite-sized pieces
100g (4oz) cherry tomatoes, halved
a little chopped parsley for garnish
You will need a large, heavy-based pan with a well-fitting lid.
Method
Prepare the spices - combine the smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, dried thyme and salt in a small dish.
Sauté the vegetables - heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan with a well-fitting lid and add the finely chopped onion, celery, yellow pepper, spring onion whites and the crushed garlic. Stir regularly until softened and translucent, trying not to colour the vegetables.
Add the spice mix - stir in the prepared spice mix and cook for a minute or so.
Add the stock - and bring to a simmer.
Add the rice - and stir just once, then turn the heat down. Leave to bubble gently for 10 minutes then stir once and cover with a well-fitting lid. Turn the leat as low as it will go and cook for 15 minutes.
Add the cooked chicken, sausage and cherry tomatoes - stirring to distribute evenly. Then replace the lid and leave to sit off the heat for 10 minutes.
Check for seasoning.
Garnish - with the green part of the spring onions and a little chopped parsley.
This is a winner of a dinner, so give it a try sooner rather than later. Do let me know when you make it; you can join the conversation by commenting below or you can get straight into my inbox by emailing me at rachelpage@substack.com ♡
Sending you all the love,
