Okay, here's the recipe for jambalaya:
Chicken Jambalaya
Ingredients
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
Kosher
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 cups long grain rice
3 cups chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with
juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
Directions
In a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon oil. Add the chicken, season lightly with
salt and pepper, and brown on both sides, about 7 minutes, working in batches if necessary. Remove the chicken to a plate. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil and the onions, peppers, and celery, and cook until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, Cajun seasoning, cayenne, salt and pepper, and give it a stir. Stir in the rice. Add the chicken back to the pot, along with the broth and tomatoes, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, about 30 minutes.
Unlike my RB&B, I can't take credit for this; it comes off of the Food Network. What I do though is add a pound of sausage (andouille, if it's available; otherwise any smoked sausage will do) and I add additional Creole seasoning. I used 3 tbsp myself; when I make it for Tara, I'll cut back to 2, as her system doesn't handle spicy well, lol. Next time I make this, I'm planning on tossing 1 tbsp of the seasoning with the chicken before I brown it; I thought the chicken was a bit bland. Of course, that could be because I can't find boneless thighs anywhere in this town and had to use breasts.
As far as gumbo goes, the only difficult thing is the roux. A good gumbo requires a dark roux, which requires you to stand there and stir the flour/oil mixture for 25-30 minutes, keeping a close watch on the temperature so it doesn't burn. I did see a recipe I"m going to try once the weather cools: you make the roux in the oven! Yep, the oven!