Jambalaya - Louisiana Rice with homemade chicken stock – Gluten-free version

👨‍🍳 Method

For the homemade chicken stock ✓ Homemade · or skip – back to store-bought

1. 1
   Put the chicken, the onion, carrot, celery, parsley, bay leaves and peppercorns and the water in a pot and bring to a boil. Skim off the foam that rises during the first 15 minutes with a spoon.

   StovePot
2. 2
   Turn down and simmer gently 2.5–3 hours.

   Stove

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
3. 3
   Strain the stock.

   Colander

For the Fried onion

1. 4
   Season the chicken. Heat the oil in a pot and brown the chicken and sausage in it 5–6 minutes. Remove and set aside.

   StovePot
2. 5
   Heat the remaining oil in a pot over medium heat.

   StovePot
3. 6
   Add the onion and celery and fry 5–8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and starts to turn golden at the edges. If it browns too fast, lower the heat.

   Stove

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
4. 7
   Add the garlic and fry about 30 seconds to 1 minute, just until fragrant. Don't let the garlic brown.

   Stove

   💡Garlic burns quickly and turns bitter. Add it only after the onion has softened, over medium heat, and add the next ingredient as soon as it smells fragrant.
5. 8
   Add the pepper and fry about 10 minutes, stirring, until it softens.

   Stove

To assemble

1. 9
   Add the rice and the paprika and cayenne pepper and stir 2 minutes, until all the grains are coated in fat.
2. 10
   Add the tomatoes and chicken stock, return the chicken and sausage to the pot and bring to a boil.

   Stove
3. 11
   Turn down to low, cover and simmer 25 minutes without opening the lid, until the liquid is absorbed.

   StoveLid
4. 12
   Turn off the heat and leave covered 5–10 minutes.

   💡Don't open the lid during cooking: the steam is what cooks the top layer. A towel between the pot and the lid absorbs the drips, so the rice doesn't get soggy.
5. 13
   Gently fluff with a fork and serve.