Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

I don't recall where I first found this recipe, only that the word Jambalaya sounded so enticing I just had to make this dish. There are several different varieties of Jambalaya and many include seafood but this was the original recipe that I tried and it's still a great dish for cool Winter nights that provides a bucketload of leftovers for some great weekday lunches!

Even though the name may sound exotic and intimidating, it's a super easy dish that requires no scary ingredients. I'm sure it's not exactly authentic and having given this a few rounds I'm on the hunt for a  more complex variety but I suggest you start with this quick and simple version if you're new to cooking. If not by all means go the whole hog right off the bat, but remember this staple will always be here if you're ever faced with an empty spice cabinet and a less than ideal supermarket at your disposal.

1 kg chicken, chopped*

2 chorizo sausage, chopped

1 onion, chopped

2 sticks celery, chopped

1 red capsicum, chopped

 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 cups chicken stock

1 cup long grain rice

 400g can of chickpeas

Tabasco sauce to taste

Brown the chicken and chorizo in a little olive oil, then add the onion, garlic, celery and capsicum and cook on medium heat until tender. 

Stir in the stock, rice, chickpeas and tabasco. Season with salt and pepper

Bring to the boil, then transfer to an oven-proof dish and bake, covered, for 25-30 minutes at 180 degrees.

Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Then fluff up the rice and garnish with fresh parsley before serving.

*I never end up using quite this much chicken and the dish works just fine!