deb's down home jambalaya

How To Make deb's down home jambalaya

• Step 1
  Boil and debone chicken, reserving all broth. I strain my broth and set it aside. Sometimes I cook the chicken the day before and put the broth in the fridge. This way, I can skim off all of the extra fat.
• Step 2
  Cut sausage into small circles and cut up ham into small pieces. In a large skillet, brown sausage and ham. Cook for a while until most of the grease is cooked out. Remove meat from the skillet. Add just enough chicken broth to cover the bottom of the skillet and stir, getting the brown drippings from the skillet stirred in (deglaze the pan, as my husband says). Add onion and bell peppers. Saute until tender and add garlic at the end.
• Step 3
  Stir in flour. I never measure the flour, just stir in small amounts until the liquid is absorbed. I usually transfer this mixture into a large stock pot at this time.
• Step 4
  Add remaining chicken broth and bring back up to temperature... hot, not necessarily boiling. You want a lot of juice, so you can add water or canned chicken broth as needed. I use the canned broth first and then a little water if needed.
• Step 5
  Add tomatoes (juice included), parsley, salt, pepper, bay leaf(s), thyme, and cayenne. Bring to a boil.
• Step 6
  Add chicken, sausage, and ham. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about an hour... stirring occasionally.
• Step 7
  Add shrimp about 10 minutes before serving.
• Step 8
  Serve in a bowl over cooked white rice so you can get a lot of the juice. We eat regular saltine crackers with it. The crackers seem to be the right flavor combination for this.
• Step 9
  MY TIPS: I never measure anything. I just put as much of what I like into it. I love the sausage and the shrimp the best, so I usually add more of those.
• Step 10
  This makes a lot, especially when you increase the ingredients, so I usually cook it in a large stock pot.
• Step 11
  I add a can of Rotel, mostly for that little bit of spice. We love it a little spicy, so I add more cayenne. Most of the time I add 2 bay leaves.
• Step 12
  This recipe originally called for adding the rice raw and letting it cook with the jambalaya. DON'T!!!! That will make it thick and the juice is really good, so just pour it OVER the rice.
• Step 13
  Do yourself a favor and buy medium shrimp already peeled and deveined. I buy the frozen, cooked ones with the tails on. Thaw them and all you have to do is remove the tails which doesn't take long.
• Step 14
  You can wait until close to the end to add the chicken, but I think it will shred no matter when you add it.
• Step 15
  This always tastes better the next day, when the spices have set in overnight. You can freeze it if you want. I usually take some out BEFORE adding the shrimp to freeze if I know I have more than I need. Then for a quick meal, all I have to do is add some shrimp and cook some rice.
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