Lucie's Jambalaya

By CheeseDiva

The original recipe uses a 2 ½ lb chicken cut up and it says to dice the sausage. Also, the original has no shrimp. I like to make it this way. But I have to admit, I used chicken thighs one year and it was really good, too.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in cubes or thighs
• 4 T vegetable oil
• 1 lge onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 c chopped celery
• 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1 c smooth tomato sauce
• 1 t dried thyme, crumbled
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 c chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups smoked turkey sausage, preferably spicy, cut on diagonal
• 2 c long or medium grain white rice
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 t cayenne pepper or to taste, or bottled hot pepper sauce
• 4 T chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 lb raw peeled and deveined prawns (31-35 count or 36-40 count)

Preparation

Step 1

Pat chicken dry. Heat oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and brown them well on all sides, and remove. Add onion, bell pepper, and celery and sauté over medium heat, stirring, 7 minutes. Add garlic, tomato sauce, thyme, bay leaf, chicken broth, and sausage. Cover and cook 20 minutes.
Bring mixture to a boil and stir in rice. Return chicken to pan. Add salt, pepper, cayenne, and 3 T parsley. Cover and cook over low heat 30-40 minutes, or until chicken and rice are tender. Do not stir much, to avoid crushing rice. Stir in shrimp, and when the shrimp turn pink, it’s ready. Sprinkle with remaining parsley and serve.