Jambalaya

 

This is my recipe, cooked today, assembled from bits and pieces of other recipes. It works for me and mine.

3 chicken legs & thighs - I buy a 10# bag and divide into 3 or 4 leg portions, freeze in baggies till I need a portion
1 tablespoon salt
4 celery stalks
1 turnip
1 onion - I don't use much celery or turnip except to make soup stock, so I buy when it's on sale, chop it fine and freeze in baggies, noting the amount (i.e. "four stalks celery," "1/2 large turnip," and the date I froze it, on the baggie with felt-tip marker (sharpie).

Day 1:
In a large stockpot, barely cover the chicken with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 15 minutes or "until done" which to me means until I can smell a "chicken soup" odor from another room. Remove chicken to a plate and let cool. Add salt, onion, celery & turnip to the broth, cover & simmer on low heat for several hours. When chicken cools enough to handle, remove skin (I give it to the cats), remove meat from bones, chop meat into bite-sized pieces and refrigerate, and return bones to the stockpot, to simmer (covered, so the broth doesn't evaporate) for the rest of the day. An hour or two before bedtime, strain the solids out of the broth and discard them (I give this to the dog - the bones have simmered down to something soft and harmless and the onion & turnip help discourage fleas & other parasites), let broth cool. Before retiring for the night set the pot of broth in the refrigerator to finish cooling.

The next day skim off and discard the layer of fat that's formed on top. If you didn't put the chicken skin back in the pot with the bones it should be a fairly thin layer.

Makes about 8 cups (1/2 gallon) broth. My jambalaya uses 4 cups broth, so I end up freezing 4 cups (just put it in a gallon ziplock bag and lay flat till it's frozen, then you can store it upright or whatever) and then next time I can skip the "Day 1" step. Just remember, if you're using frozen broth, to thaw it before you start frying onions. It's so much more convenient to have liquid broth on hand than to stop everything to thaw a chunk of ice.

4 slices bacon, chopped into 1/2 inch chunks
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, coarsely chopped
1 bell pepper, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon dill seed (optional, and I may leave it out next time)
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce (tabasco, etc) - adjust to taste
2 cups uncooked rice
4 cups chicken broth (use what you made yesterday, or buy some at the store)
1 6-oz can tomato paste
1 lb breakfast sausage, crumbled & fried (or you can use italian/polish/andoullie/bratwurst, etc, fried and sliced into 1/2 to 1 inch portions -- I just use whatever I have on hand)

Day 2:
Fry the bacon till moderately crisp, add butter, stirring to melt. Add onion, garlic, bell pepper and fry till tender. Add spices. Add rice, stir to coat with oil. Add broth. Stir in tomato paste, stir till blended. Heat to boiling, stirring to keep from sticking, reduce heat, cover & simmer 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Stir in sausage and chicken.

It's done.