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In Louisiana, Jambalaya is king! Many events feature large pots of jambalaya simmering outdoors for catered lunches or dinners. Our delicious jambalaya pasta is a Cajun jambalaya recipe with a twist. You can't help but fall in love with this flavor-packed meal. It is just that good!

What is jambalaya?

To us, it's a one pot dinner that delights everyone. Jambalaya is filled with marinated chicken, spicy Cajun sausage, fragrant onions, peppers, celery, tomatoes and a whole lot of great spices. Often it's a shrimp and sausage jambalaya, or a combo of these plus chicken. Traditionally, the base for these ingredients is rice. We've tried pasta jambalaya at various restaurants around the U.S. and decided to make our own version of this tasty dish with bow tie pasta.

What does "jambalaya" mean?

The Oxford English dictionary says "jambalaya" comes from the Louisiana French Provencal word "jambalaia" which means a mish mash or mixup.

A Louisiana original

The dish originated in Louisiana with French, Spanish and African influences. There are both Cajun and Creole jambalayas. Jambalaya was a dish of the people. For people of limited resources, any leftovers could be thrown into the jambalaya pot. Any variety or combination of meats may be used to make jambalaya.

Veggies!

Because we lived in Louisiana, we've eaten some delicious jambalayas. We've also had plenty with dry meat and too much rice. We love the jambalaya recipes filled with vegetables. In creating our recipe, we wanted to make a creamy jambalaya pasta. Our easy jambalaya has a delicious tomato cream sauce that gives it some "lagniappe" ("a little something extra").

Dry rub chicken

For this recipe, we rub a Cajun spice marinade on chicken pieces. Next, fry some bacon.

One pot jambalaya

Save a little bacon grease to sauté the veggies. Next add chicken, Cajun sausage, tomatoes, a few more tasty herbs, and brown sugar. Don't worry, you don't need to go to Louisiana to find the sausage. My Las Vegas Costco had "Louisiana sausage". Andouille sausage is traditional, but you can use any type of Italian sausage if you'd like.

Making tomato cream sauce

You can make the bow tie pasta and the tomato cream sauce while the jambalaya is simmering. For the sauce, sauté onions, then add canned tomatoes, herbs and spices and simmer. Next puree with an emersion blender or regular blender.

When cooking is finished, simply toss the tomato cream sauce together with the pasta, meat and vegetables. Add a bit of fresh Italian parsley for garnish. We hope you'll love this pasta jambalaya, or what the locals call "Pastalaya" like we do!

Enjoy!

Dianna

If you like this recipe, why not try some other delicious Louisiana recipes?

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Yield: 8

Jambalaya Pasta

Name: Jambalaya Pasta
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: Cajun
Ingredients: 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning (such as Tony Chacere’s or Monster Creole); 1 teaspoon smoked paprika; ½ cup bacon (about 6 pieces), cooked and chopped; 1 large yellow onion (about 2 cups), diced (reserve ½ cup for sauce); 2 cups celery, diced; 1 green bell pepper, diced; 1 red bell pepper, diced; 1 yellow bell pepper, diced; 6 garlic cloves, minced; 1 pound chicken breast, diced; 1 pound andouille sausage, or other Cajun sausage (we used Louisiana Brand hot links from Costco), sliced diagonally; 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved; 10 ounce can Rotel tomatoes and green chilis, drained; 1 bunch green onions, sliced; 1 bunch Italian parsley, chopped (reserve ½ for garnish); 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce; 1 Tablespoon Tabasco sauce (or other hot sauce); 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar; 1 teaspoon smoked paprika; ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper; 1 pound bow tie pasta; 1 Tablespoon olive oil; ½ cup yellow onion, diced; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 Tablespoon brown sugar; ½ teaspoon black pepper; ½ teaspoon salt; ½ teaspoon dried thyme; ½ teaspoon tried oregano; ½ teaspoon dried basil

Cajun sausage, spicy chicken and vegetables are tossed with a tomato cream sauce and bow tie pasta.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

For Chicken Marinade Rub

1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning (such as Tony Chacere’s or Monster Creole)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika

For Jambalaya

½ cup bacon (about 6 pieces), cooked and chopped
1 large yellow onion (about 2 cups), diced (reserve ½ cup for sauce)
2 cups celery, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound chicken breast, diced
1 pound andouille sausage, or other Cajun sausage (we used Louisiana Brand hot links from Costco), sliced diagonally
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
10 ounce can Rotel tomatoes and green chilis, drained
1 bunch green onions, sliced
1 bunch Italian parsley, chopped (reserve ½ for garnish)
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 Tablespoon Tabasco sauce (or other hot sauce)
1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 pound bow tie pasta

For Tomato Cream Sauce

1 Tablespoon olive oil
½ cup yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon tried oregano
½ teaspoon dried basil
28 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 cup cream

Instructions

Chicken Marinade Rub

1. Cut 1 pound chicken breasts in to bite size pieces.

2. Place in a bowl or other dish. Sprinkle with Cajun seasoning and smoked paprika and rub in.

3. Let sit for 15 minutes to marinate before cooking chicken.

Jambalaya

Note: Use a large pot to make this dish.
1. Cook bacon in a large pot until crisp. Remove from pan and place on paper towel lined plate to absorb grease. Chop when cooled and set aside.

2. Using 1 Tablespoon bacon grease and reserved “bits” in pot, sauté 1 ½ cups chopped onion for 3-4 minutes, then add chopped celery, and red, yellow and green peppers for about 5 minutes more.
3. Add garlic and blend into other ingredients.
4. Add chicken pieces to pot and sauté to cook through.
5. Add sliced sausage to pot and continue to sauté ingredients.
6. Place chopped bacon, grape tomatoes, Rotel tomatoes/chilies green onions, parsley, Worchestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce, red wine vinegar, and smoked paprika in pot and stir to combine.
7. Let pot simmer for 30 minutes while you make tomato cream sauce and cook bow tie pasta according to package directions (cook 10 minutes for al dente).
8. See instruction for tomato cream sauce below.
9. After pasta is drained and tomato cream sauce is finished, add sauce to meat and vegetables. Then gently toss with pasta and stir to blend well.
10. Place in serving bowl. Garnish with reserved chopped parsley.
Serve.

Tomato Cream Sauce

1. Sauté ½ cup chopped onions in olive oil.
2. Add garlic, brown sugar, pepper, salt, thyme, oregano, and basil.
3. Add diced canned tomatoes and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes.
4. Turn down heat and add cream. Stir to blend well.
5. Blend with emersion blender or cool a bit and puree in blender.

Notes

Save time by cooking the tomato cream sauce while simultaneously cooking the jambalaya. When the sauce is finished, set aside and cook pasta while jambalaya is finishing.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 598Total Fat: 36gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 127mgSodium: 1291mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 5gSugar: 10gProtein: 34g

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