Dutch Oven Jambalaya with Creole Seasoning

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This dutch oven jambalaya is perfect as a make-ahead meal, or a meal to feed a crowd! It’s easy and just uses a single dutch oven. The creole seasoning is a blend of Cajun-inspired spices to give that delicious kick.

Related: Cast Iron Dinner Ideas

Related: How to clean a dutch oven

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Dutch Oven Jambalaya recipe

I wanted a recipe that could feed a crowd, only used one pot, and had a ton of flavor. So, I made this dutch oven jambalaya recipe (also known as gumbo). You’ll love the spicy kick from the creole seasoning blend!

Jambalaya Ingredients

• 1 lb chicken sausage
• 1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 cups jasmine brown rice (soaked)
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 Large yellow onion
• 3 stalks celery
• 3 cups bone broth – use my homemade bone broth recipe here
• 6 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 16 oz jar tomatoes (diced or crushed)
• 1 can tomato paste
• cream cheese to taste

Homemade Creole seasoning ingredients

• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbs smoked paprika
• 1/2 tbs dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Creole Seasoning Instructions

• Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.

Jambalaya Instructions

The night before

• Place your rice in a bowl and pour filtered water over top (enough to cover rice) and let soak overnight (or at least 6 hours).

The night of

• Pour your rice through a mesh strainer to remove the water and set rice aside.

• Slice the sausage into about 1/2 inch rounds.
• Dice all the veggies.
• Add olive oil to your dutch oven and heat over medium heat.
• Add sausage to dutch oven and sauté until just browned (about 5 minutes).

• Add your veggies, minced garlic and half of the creole seasoning. Stir to combine and saute until veggies have slightly softened (about 5 minutes).

• Then, add shrimp and cook until pink mixing well until combined (about 3 minutes).

• Transfer the meat and veggies from the dutch oven to a large bowl and set aside.
• Add chicken stock to dutch oven with rice and bring to a boil.
• Add tomatoes and tomato paste, stir and cover for about 15 minutes. Turn the heat off and let sit for another 15 minutes (with the lid on).  

• Remove the lid from the dutch oven and add the remaining creole seasoining stirring to combine.
• Add in the veggies and meat mixture and stir.

• Cover the dutch oven with a lid and reduce heat to low. Allow jambalaya to simmer and reduce (about 15 minutes).
• Top with a dollop of cream cheese.

Notes about homemade creole seasoning blend

• If this is too spicy, reduce the amount of cayenne pepper

• To store the creole seasoning blend, just pour into a spice jar, or an airtight bag or container and store in a dark cupboard.

Notes about jambalaya recipe

• If you don’t want to make your own creole seasoning, just use 4 tbs of store-bought Cajun spice.
• It’s important to soak your rice whether for jambalaya or something else. If you can’t soak your rice overnight, try for at least 6 hours. And if you can’t do 6 hours, soak in hot water for about 10 minutes then dump that water.

Why soak rice for jambalaya

1. It’s important to soak rice to remove any contaminants. Did you know, rice is known to accumulate more arsenic than any other food crop?
2. Soaking rice makes it more easily digestible
3. The rice will cook faster if you allow it to soak.

tips for making jambalaya in a dutch oven

1. Make sure you preheat your dutch oven before adding the oil.
2. Make sure you preheat the oil before adding the ingredients to make the dutch oven non-stick.
3. Dutch ovens hold heat much better than any other cooking vessel, so you’ll want to shorten the cook time than what you might be used to.

how to freeze jambalaya

To freeze your jambalaya, let it cool inside the dutch oven. Then, place it in a glass container with an airtight lid in the freezer for up to 3 months. Or place it in plastic freezer bags and lay flat in the freezer for up to 3 months.

how To reheat jambalaya from frozen

To reheat your frozen jambalaya place it in your dutch oven over low-medium heat with a little water until heated through. You could also place it in a microwave-safe dish and heat it in the microwave until heated through.

NOTE: if you’re using the microwave method to reheat your food, make sure to cover with a damp towel and place a glass of water in the microwave as you’re heating it up so the jambalaya doesn’t dry out.

What seasoning to use for jambalaya

The best seasoning to use for jambalaya is a Cajun spice blend like my homemade creole seasoning in the recipe below. It’s a blend of smokey spices and flavorful herbs that give the jambalaya a nice kick.

Dutch Oven Jambalaya with Chicken

Jambalaya can also be made with chicken! To make chicken jambalaya, either substitute the sausage (not recommended) or the shrimp (recommended) with 1 lb of chicken breast cut into 1-inch cubes. You’ll need to brown the chicken in the dutch oven prior to adding the sausage in this case.

what to serve with jambalaya

Jambalaya is so hearty as-is so it’s the perfect stand-alone dish. However, here are some serving options for your jambalaya.

1. Roasted vegetables
2. Garden salad
3. Ceasar salad
4. Cornbread

is jambaylaya healthy?

Jambalaya can be made healthy if you use clean ingredients. Here are some tips for making your jambalaya healthy.

1. Tomato sauce: make sure it has no sugar, or other unnecessary additives. Pure tomatoes are what you’re looking for.
2. Seasoning: ensure your seasoning doesn’t have any unnecessary sugar, msg, or exsessive amounts of salt. Avoid this by making your own using my homemade creole seasoning recipe.
3. Meat: Use good quality, humanely-raised meat without any antibiotics or horomones.
4. Shrimp: Make sure your shrimp is wild-caught.

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