Twelve Days of Christmas in Cajun Land

’tis funny no matter what month it is! This is an oldie that I dressed up just a little bit. (BTW Thibeau is not Thibodeaux misspelled.)


Day 1: Dear Boudreaux, Tanks for de bird in a pear tree. I fix it las’ night with Jambalaya. I doan tink de pear tree will grow inna swamp, so I swap it for a Satsuma.

Day 2: Dear Boudreaux, You letter say you sent two turtle doves, but all I got was two scrawny pigeons. Anyway, I mixed dem with andouille sausage and made some good gumbo out of dem.

Day 3: Dear Boudreaux, Why doan you sent some crawfish? I’m tired of eating dem birds. I gave two of dose prissy French chickens to Marie Trahan over at Grans Bayou and fed de turd one to my dog Phideaux.

Day 4: Dear Boudreaux, Mon Dieu! I tol you no more a dem birds. Deez four, what you call dem “calling birds” were so noisy you could hear dem all de way to Napoleonville. I used dere necks for my crab traps, and fed de rest of dem to de gators.

Day 5: Dear Boudreaux, You finally sen’ something useful. I like dem golden rings, me. I hocked dem over at da pawn shop in Thibodeaux and got enuff money to fix da shaft on my shrimp boat and buy a round for da boys at de Raisin’ Cane Lounge. Merci Beaucoup!

Day 6: Dear Boudreaux, Couchon! Back to da birds, you big honking ole turkey! Poor egg suckin’ Phideaux is scared to death at dem six geeses. He tried to eat dems eggs and dey peck de heck out a his snout. Dey good at eating cockroaches, though. I may stuff one of dem with erster dressing.

Day 7: Dear Boudreaux, I’m gonna wring your fool neck next time I cast eyes on you. Thibeau, da mailman is ready to kill ya. The merde from all dem birds is stinking up his mailboat. He's afraid someone will slip on dat stuff and sue him good. I let dose seven swans loose to swim on de bayou and some duck hunters from Mississippi blasted dem out of de water. Talk to YOU tomorra.

Day 8: Dear Boudreaux, Mais cher! Poor ole Thibeau, he had to make tree trips on his mailboat to deliver dem 8 maids a milkin and all their cows. One of dem cows got spooked by da alligators and almost tipped over da boat! I doan like dem shiftless maids, me no. I tolt dem to get to work guttin fish and sweeping the floor, but no. Dey say it wasn’t in dair contract. Dey probably tink de too good ta skin nutrias I caught las night, f’sure.

Day 9: Dear Boudreaux, What for you tryin to do huh? Thibeau had to borry the whole Lutcher ferry to carry dem jumpin’ twits you call “Lords-a-leaping” ‘cross da bayou. As soon as dey gots here, dey wanted a tea break with crumpets. I doan know what dat means but I says, “Well, La-Dee-Da. You gets Chicory coffee or nuttin.”

Mon Dieu, Emile! What I’m gonna feed all dese bozos? Dey too snooty for fried nutria, and de cows done eat all my turnip greens.

Day 10: Dear Boudreaux, You got to be outs you mind! If de mailman don’t kill you, I will f’sure. Today he deliver in da mailboat, 10 half nekid floozies from Bourbon Street, all the way from N’Awlins. He said dey be “Ladies-a-Dancing” but dey doan act like ladies in front of dose Limey twits.

All a dem almos' left for good after one of dem go bit by a water moccasin over by da outhouse. I had to butcher two whole cows to feed toute le monde and had to get terlit paper. The Sears catalog wasn’t good enuff for dose hoity toity Lords’ royal beehines.

Day 11: Dear Boudreaux, Where y’at? Cheerio and pip pip! Your eleven pipers piping arrives today on the mailboat. Dey musta come from de House of Blues, second lining as soon as de got off de boat. We fixed stuffed goose and beef jambalaya too, finished all da whiskey and we having a fine fais-do-do. Da new mailman, he drink a bottle of Jack Daniel and he having a good time, yeah, dancing with all de floozies. Thibeau, he jump off de Sunshine Bridge yesterday, screaming your name. If you get a mysterious, ticking package in de mail, doan open it. Hit’s prolly a goodbye present from the old mailman.

Day 12: Dear, dear Boudreaux, I sorry to tole ya, but I ‘taint your true love anymore, no. After fais-do-do, I spent de night talking with Jacques, de head piper. We decide to open a restaurant and gentleman’s club on de bayou. De floozies, pardon me, Ladies-a-Dancing, can make $20 for a table dance, and de Lords can be waiters and valet park de boats and pirogues. Since de maids doan have no more cows ta milk, I trained dem ta set my crab traps, watch my trotlines, an run my shrimping bidness. We will prolly gross a million whole clams next year.

What To Do About New Orleans?

Some say restore flood damaged New Orleans, yet others say she should be allowed to return to the waves, because we can’t fight nature forever.

I am speaking as a seventh generation New Orleanian, and if I could have my way, I'd say...

Keep the port of New Orleans open, because it is a major commercial artery into the heart of America.

Keep the French Quarter because it's on ‘high ground’ anyway. Keep all the older New Orleans and South Louisiana communities that are all on higher ground. They are doing just fine, and have been for a long, long time through many 'canes...

The ones that are not doing so well and make the biggest news (noise) are all the "newer" communities that have been built over the past sixty, seventy or so years on reclaimed swampland and low lying riverbottom land by builders and developers who were blinded by the shiny flash of money to be made...and of course all the dumb sheep followed...and more followed over the years until everybody kinda forgot that they are seriously living in harm's way.

Alligators belong in the New Orleans Ninth Ward and Lakeview areas (and many other low spots), not people.

ALL those places that are so prone to floods....turn it all back into what it originally was: some of the finest hunting and fishing lands in the world!

PureCajunSunshine's Red Beans and Rice Recipe

This is Part Three in a trilogy. Part Two is "Wash Day on the Bayou", posted on July 30, 2007. Part One is "Red Beans and Rice, Old Time Creole Style: A Story and a Recipe", posted on July 26, 2007.


If you are not from South Louisiana, there are a few important things you need to know about preparing Red Beans and Rice...

The beans...

Although my family (and everyone else I knew back in the day) always used red kidney beans, I've heard that some people prefer small red beans. If you can't get either kind, Pinto beans and Great Northern beans are suitable substitutes.

When shopping for red kidney beans, try to pick the lightest colored beans for best flavor and creamiest texture. The darker the beans, the older and tougher they are.

Red kidney beans can take less than two hours to cook, or as in the old Wash Days, up to eight hours. For hurry-ups, I will include a thirty-minute recipe using canned beans.


The meat...

A variety of meats may be used, in any combination, or singly, according to personal preference. The meat may be cooked with the beans (ham hocks, pickled pork, a meaty hambone, and/or sausage), or it may be cooked separately and served on the side (sausage or pork chops).

I like to flavor my beans with about a pound of good quality smoked sausage, cut into two inch sections. On special occasions, I also prepare a side order of pork chops that have been dusted with a good Cajun or Creole seasoning blend, and fried in a small amount of bacon drippings.

Regional meats such as Andouille sausage or "Pickle Meat" adds a special home-style flavor to Red Beans and Rice. A good substitute for Andouille sausage is a high quality Kielbasa sausage, which is a wonderful Polish creation that is found in nearly every grocery store.

In the old days, when this dish was a six to eight hour affair, a meaty hambone from Sunday's dinner was broken and added to the pot to allow the marrow to be released during long cooking. A combination of the marrow and the effects of hours of cooking gave the beans a special creaminess. A dollop or two of butter stirred into the pot in the last minutes of cooking is a fine substitute for marrow.


The "trinity" and the "pope"...

In the old days, almost everyone in south Lousiana was Catholic. The faith permeated everything, even food.

In a south Louisiana kitchen, the trinity is a combination of three essential ingredients that form some of the basic flavors for many dishes, including Red Beans and Rice. Onions, celery and bell pepper are referred to as the "holy trinity". Garlic is referred to as the "pope" because the shape of a pod of garlic resembles the shape of the pope's miter...ok, his holy hat.

The trinity for this dish is sauteed, or gently cooked, in butter or bacon drippings until wilted. Then all the other ingredients are added.


The rice...

Hot fluffy rice is served in the center of the plate, and the creamy beans are spooned all around the hill of rice. If cooked separately, the sausage or pork chops are placed to the side, on top of the beans.

For a special touch, a small sprig of parsley atop the hot mound of rice, or a garnish of minced green onion sprinkled over the beans, is nice.


The recipe...


PureCajunSunshine's Red Beans and Rice

1 pound dried red kidney beans
1 medium-large onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 small or half a large bell pepper, chopped
1 or 2 tablespoons finely minced fresh garlic
1 bunch of green onions, chopped from the bulb to the tip (about 2 cups)
1 or 2 generous dollop of butter
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley, or 1 heaping tablespoon dry parsley
1 pinch of thyme (what you can pick up between your thumb and index finger)
2 large bay leaves or 3 small ones
your favorite Louisiana hot sauce to taste
your choice of meat (see above commentary)
salt (add only after the beans begin to soften), or a good Cajun or Creole seasoning blend, to taste. See below for recipes for Creole Seasoning blends.


Clean the beans of garden rejects, gravel, dirt and anything else that doesn't belong there. Rinse until the water comes clear. Soak in water overnight. In the morning, drain water from the beans.

If you forgot to soak the beans, all is not lost. Put the beans in a large, heavy pot with enough water to cover them. Slowly bring to a boil. Boil for a few minutes. Turn off heat. Let soak for an hour or two. Do not drain the liquid from the semi-cooked beans.

Chop the onions, celery and bell peppers into approximately 1/4" pieces. Chop the garlic fine. Saute the vegetables (cook over medium-low heat in a small amount of bacon drippings) until they are wilted and softened a bit, stirring frequently to prevent browning. Stir in half the green onions. Stir until wilted. Remove from pan, and set aside.

Add a small amount of bacon drippings to the pan, and fry sausage (or pork chops, etc.) until cooked. Remove meat, drain excess grease. Return sausage to the pot, add beans, and sauteed onions, celery, bell pepper and garlic. Add enough water to cover beans about two or three inches. Bring to a boil, and allow to cook over medium high heat for about a half hour, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat to a gentle boil, add the bay leaves and thyme. Stir well, cover and cook for another hour, or longer if the beans are old. Stir occasionally to prevent scorching. The use of a heavy pot also helps in this regard. Add a little water as needed to keep the beans from cooking dry.

After the beans begin to soften, smash some of them against the side of the pot to "cream" about a third of the beans. This gives the dish a wonderful creamy smoothness that glorifies hot fluffy rice!

Add salt, parsley, and hot sauce to taste. Continue to cook a few minutes more, stirring frequently until the new flavors are well blended, and it is thickened enough to honor the rice with a rich and creamy bath.

Just before serving, stir the remaining cup of chopped green onions into the pot.

Serve with hot fluffy rice, with pork chops on the side. A fresh green salad and garlic bread are nice accompaniments to complete this culinary delight!

Ça c'est bon! (that's good!)


PureCajunSunshine's Thirty Minute Red Beans and Rice Recipe

In place of the beans in the above recipe, use five or six cans (15 1/2 oz. each) of red kidney beans. I like to use a combination of both light and dark red kidney beans. If you can get it, use one of these brands: "Blue Runner", or "Van Camp's Creole Red Beans". Dump the entire contents of two of the cans into a blender, and whiz it up good. Set aside.

For quicker cooking, use a good quality precooked smoked sausage. Brands such as Healthy Choice or Hillshire's are good.

After the onions, celery, bell pepper and garlic have been sauteed, and the meat has been fried, and excess grease drained off, add all the canned beans (liquid included) to the pot, including the blender creamed ones. Add only enough water to keep the beans from cooking dry. Add seasonings and cook over medium high heat for 15 minutes or so, stirring frequently until flavors are well blended. Stir in chopped green onions just before serving.



This may be reprinted by you for noncommercial use, if the following credit is given:

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Make your own South Louisiana seasoning blends! Here are a couple of good recipes. These versions are not as complex as the (top secret) commercial versions, but they're darned close:


From Emeril Lagasse:

Emeril's Bayou Blast

2 1/2 T. paprika
2 T salt
2 T garlic powder
1 T onion powder
1 T black pepper
1 T cayenne pepper powder
1 T oregano, dried and crumbled fine
1 T thyme, dried and crumbled fine

Combine all ingredients, mix well. Pour into a clean salt shaker.
Use on just about anything. Sprinkle generously before cooking.


This recipe is from Tony Chachere's Cajun Country Cookbook:

Tony Chachere's All-Purpose Creole Seasoning

1 box (26-oz) Morton's free flowing salt
1 box (1 1/2 oz) ground black pepper
1 bottle (2-oz) ground red pepper
1 bottle (1-oz)pure garlic powder
1 bottle (1-oz) chili powder
1 carton (1-oz) Monosodium glutamate (Accent)

Mix well and use like salt. When it's salty enough, it's "seasoned to perfection". Use generously on everything.

Tips: To season seafood use half of the above mixture and add:

1 tsp powdered thyme
1 tsp bay leaf
1 tsp sweet basil

Wash Day on the Bayou

This is Part Two in a trilogy. Part One is "Red Beans and Rice, Old Time Creole Style: A Story and a Recipe", posted on July 26, 2007. Part Three is "PureCajunSunshine's Red Beans and Rice Recipe", posted August 4, 2007.


Early in the morning, before most of the birds were fully awake, Mamere would already have the fires blazing under two huge black kettles of water that were set up outside. Those who lived near the bayous usually set up their wash day contraptions near the water's edge, to make the job of hauling water easier. The large kettles were set up on bricks over the fire. One kettle was filled about two thirds full of water, and was designated for washing and boiling sheets first, then a succession of clothes. Another kettle was filled with clear water to be heated and used to fill smaller wash tubs. A long poke stick or two, a few cakes of lye soap (or store-bought Octagon soap), some wooden benches, wash tubs, and a washboard were set up. The addition of a wooden deck was always nice because it helped to keep the place from turning into a messy mud-wallow after countless Mondays of laundry.

Mamere's washboard was a beautiful old one. Its gleaming hills and valleys were carved from a single heavy block of cypress by her grandfather's hand. The newer metal washboards became the minou's meow back in the 1850's, when the new-fangled inventions made their first appearance in the stores. But Mamere stubbornly clung to the old family washboard. Mais, cher! The old ways are good.

While water heated in the kettles outside, Mamere would hurry back into the kitchen to prepare the morning meal and to get the tradtional Monday's Red Beans and Rice started. After the breakfast dishes were cleaned and put away, the pot of beans was given a final stirring, and was moved to the back of the stove. There, it would gently simmer for the next several hours while Mamere washed clothes.

Although the same basic steps were always followed, Mamere, like countless other women of the day, had her own way of doing laundry. She would pour hot water into four wash tubs that were arranged on the benches. Two of the tubs were reserved for rinsing only. A third tub was filled two thirds full with hot water and enough soap flakes to make a mild soapy brew. Soap flakes were made by shaving off thin slivers from a bar of homemade lye soap or store bought Octagon bar soap (Ivory soap can be used this way, too). Enough soap was added to the big kettle that was filled two thirds full of boiling hot water, to make a very strong soapy brew. A fourth tub of water on the bench included liquid starch that she made from potatoes. In later years, she admitted that powdered store bought Faultless Starch from a box worked almost as well as her potato starch. Imagine that.

Into the strong soapy brew in the big pot over the fire, went the big stuff like bed sheets. The sheets were stirred and poked with the long poke stick until Mamere was satisfied they were clean. With a deft sweeping motion of her poke stick, Mamere would lift the sheets out of the pot and plop them onto a bench to drain and cool a bit before wringing, rinsing, and wringing them again. After the sheets were hung on the clothes line, then the dark colored pants, shirts and dresses were washed in the same hot soapy water. They were stirred and poked in the same manner as the sheets. Lastly, after the previous batch of clothing was removed from the pot, the grubbier work clothes were thrown in, and given a real good workout with the poke stick.

If it was a warm breezy day, Mamere didn't have to wring the water out of the clothes as much. Drip dry is nice. On very humid or freezing cold days, she would wring out as much water out as possible, so that the clothes dried better. There was a trick to wringing bed sheets and other heavy items by twisting them with the poke stick, but she used to wring just about everything else by hand. Later, after she bought a hand-cranked wringer, she wondered how in the world she managed to do laundry without it.

The lighter weight whites and very light colored items such as shirts, pants, dresses and underwear went into the washtub on the bench with the mild soapy mixture.
After the clothes soaked for a few minutes, the whites were scrubbed on a wooden washboard that was set up inside the tub. It went something like this: rub and plunge, rub and plunge. One area at a time, each article of clothing was rubbed on the washboard, then plunged into the soapy water...rub and plunge, rub and plunge... Often she hummed or sang a catchy tune in time with the action. It looked like a right good time to all the little girls, who wanted so badly to hurry up and grow big enough to help. Duh huh. Little did they know...

After much rinsing, wringing and singing, the cleaned shirts, pants and dresses were dipped into the starch pan, and wrung out a final time. In the days after Mrs. Stewart's Liquid Bluing was invented, a small amount was often added to the final rinse water for making whites look brighter and whiter. Mrs. Stewart's familiar blue bottle can still be found on store shelves to this day, near the laundry detergents.

True to South Louisiana tradition, nothing is ever wasted. At the end of the washday, the pot of hot soapy water was poured on unwanted weeds in the driveway and walkways. This worked fine and dandy as a weed killer, or it could be used to scrub the porch. The rinse water from the washtubs was poured into the flower beds.

By the time the last of the clothing was dried and taken off the line, the Red Beans and Rice that simmered all day had reached the peak of goodness and was ready to enjoy! To many in South Louisiana, it is a delicious comfort food that evokes fond memories of our mothers and grandmothers from a time gone by.



(Coming soon...two of my favorite Red Beans and Rice recipes. One recipe takes less than two hours to cook; the other one takes less than thirty minutes, and tastes almost as good as Mamere's beans that cooked all day.)



This may be reprinted by you for noncommercial use, if the following credit is given:

This is an excerpt from . For more information, see the left sidebar on this site: http://purecajunsunshine.blogspot.com/

THIS IS WHAT MINOU-CATS

LOOK LIKE ON WASH DAY

Red Beans and Rice, Old Time Creole Style: A Story and a Recipe

This is Part One in a trilogy. Part Two is "Wash Day on the Bayou", posted July 30, 2007. Part Three is "PureCajunSunshine's Red Beans and Rice Recipe", posted August 4, 2007.


Red Beans and Rice is the old fashioned South Louisiana answer to the electric Crock Pot. Traditionally, this delicious slow cooked comfort food was usually prepared on wash day. Why wash day fell on Mondays is anybody's guess. I think it was because most folks were rested and charged-up from the slower pace of Sundays.

Wash day in the old days was hard, and it was an all day affair. Red Beans and Rice was the perfect solution for Monday's not-enough-hours-in-a-day problem. The beans could be left alone to simmer slowly for hours with very little attention from the cook.

Red Beans and Rice is a versatile dish. It is delicious either as a two hour cooked affair, or simmered for up to eight hours in a heavy black iron pot on the back of a wood burning stove. It adapts well to whatever is on hand, such as sausage, diced ham, smoked ham hock, pork chops, or salt pork. There are recipes that call for regional favorites such as pickle meat, tasso, or andouille. Singly or in any combination, these flavors work well with beans. Traditionally, a meaty hambone from Sunday's dinner is added to the pot. Mamere always gave the hambone a few good whacks to break it, so that the goodness from the marrow can seep out as it cooked.

Of course, the longer it cooks, the creamier the beans will be. The flavor from the cracked hambone lends a special taste and creaminess that can only be attributed to the marrow. An almost-as-good substitute for hambone marrow is a dollop of real butter stirred into the pot just before serving.

All day long, back in the old days...promises of fine eating wafted outside kitchen windows all over the neighborhood, to ride in the breeze, and tormented us all. By the time all the laundry was washed, supper was ready and welcomed with glad hearts and large appetites, whetted sharp with the smells of the day. In some of the older neighborhoods (on high ground) in New Orleans, it is still like that to this day. Good smells, good food, good times...

I think that second only to Sunday's dinner, Monday's supper is the most eagerly awaited meal of the week In New Orleans. No, wait! There's Friday's seafood. Or, what about Tuesday's Red Bean Gumbo, made with Monday's Red Beans and Rice, that's made with Sunday's hambone...and so on it goes. It just gets better and better.

We don't just have leftovers, we celebrate them.

I have a couple of favorite recipes to share, but first let me tell you the story of why Red Beans and Rice seems to taste so much better on wash day in South Louisiana...

(Recipes will follow shortly after the post titled, Wash Day on the Bayou)




This may be reprinted by you for noncommercial use, if the following credit is given:


This is an excerpt from . For more information, see the left sidebar on this site: http://purecajunsunshine.blogspot.com/

You are probably from Louisiana if...

You know that "(he / she / it) passed me a pair of eyes." means that someone has just given you a look of utter disdain. This is usually performed best by teenagers, husbands and wives. My own dog has given me that look. Many times.

You eat things that most people hire an exterminator to get out of their yards.

Your eyes pop and your jaws drop. you drool, and your tongue hangs out whenever you see a whole gallon of Tabasco. You will willingly spend your last $$$ to buy a gallon of this essential life-giving fluid. Hmmm.. I wonder if it can be used in an I.V. drip to rejuvinate tired old Cajuns? Ppssstt...you can get it here: http://countrystore.tabasco.com


You are probably from Louisiana if...

You plan your wedding around hunting season. Your funeral too, if you could.

You drive a boat more than your car.

When you evacuate, the first things you grab are your ever-trusty shrimp boots that saw you through many a wild time. You'd just feel better knowing they're right there with you. Those white shrimping boots, also known as Cajun Reeboks, will keep your feet dry no matter what comes. Even in a Motel 6 parking lot in another state.

Northerners are anyone living any further north above Baton Rouge.

When you say "WAY up North", you are referring to places like Alexandria, Shreveport or Monroe. There are places more north than that, where polar bears live.

Your burial plot is six feet over rather than six feet under. Even the dead float, here.

When giving directions for almost any town in South Louisiana, you use words like "lakeside", "northshore", "eastbank", "westbank", "bestbank", "down da bayou", "up da bayou", "riverside", or "across da river".

You've ever worn T shirts and shorts in December.

You can pronounce Tchoupitoulas, and know that it is the name of a street in New Orleans, not a sexually transmitted disease.

You know it is normal when you see ships riding higher in the river than the top of your house. When they're not, you know the levee broke...

You know it is Monday in New Orleans if you smell Red Beans and Rice cooking.

(Coming soon...a story and my favorite Red Beans and Rice recipe.)



This may be reprinted by you for noncommercial use, if the following credit is given:

"You are probably from Louisiana if..." and this recipe is an excerpt from . For more information, see the left sidebar on this site: http://purecajunsunshine.blogspot.com/

Tame those wild potato chip monsters

Here's a satisfying homemade snack to tame those unruly cravings to munch on too many chips, nuts and stuff. I love the way it satisfies cravings for salt and crunchies. Super low cost, too. Tweak this delicious and healthy recipe with your own favorite seasonings.

PureCajunSunshine's Lentil Snacks

1 cup brown lentils
1 quart water
salt (between 1/2 -1 teaspoon)
1/2 teaspoon oil (olive, coconut, canola, etc)

Boil gently for 10 minutes, then let stand 15 minutes. Drain well.
Stir in the oil until well distributed. Sprinkle on your favorite seasonings (see below).
Mix well.
Preheat oven 425 degrees F.
Spread thinly, in a single layer in a pan lined with foil.
Bake 10 to 15 minutes, stirring often until crisp. Let cool.

CAUTION: Watch closely, as they will burn to a nasty black crisp in no time!

For small portions, I like to use my electric toaster oven. For open fire cooking, use a skillet.

The mild taste of the lentils makes this a versatile snack because you can flavor it with just about any seasoning, and it'll probably turn out good. Experiment until you find your favorites. Have fun!


Lentil snack seasoning blends to try:

Flavor treat #1
Cajun/Creole Seasoning
(Don't have any? Make your own. See recipe at the end of the Jambalaya-ya-ya recipe.)

OR

Flavor treat #2
1/8 - 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 - 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 - 1/2 teaspoon chili powder

OR

Flavor treat #3
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper


Other flavoring options to use singly or combined with the above blends:

--Popcorn Salt (superfine grade, buttered or plain)

--Powdered Cheese Flavoring

--Morton's Nature's Seasonings (contains no MSG)

--Red Monkey Seasonings (www.RedMonkeyFoods.com)
Their seasonings are made to be used after cooking for an extra taste treat. Several flavors to pick from: BBQ, Cajun,Charbroiled, Southwest Flavors. No MSG. Wondermous make-you-sigh flavors.


Next, I'm going to try this with cooked or canned chickpeas, black beans, and all kinds of other cooked beans...if you beat me to it, please tell me your results!


This may be reprinted by you for noncommercial use, if the following credit is given:


This recipe is an excerpt from . For more information, see the left sidebar on this site: http://purecajunsunshine.blogspot.com/

Jambalaya-ya-ya!

First, here's a little video to get you in the mood for some kicking Jambalaya. Wow! can you believe a four year old kid can sing and dance like that? Oh hey, check out those cool moves, too. If you're on pokey-slow dial-up internet connection like I am, I can guarantee that the long wait will be worth your while. Enjoy your Jambalaya!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQPEsa5e7K0&mode=related&search
Please pull up the Hunter Hayes "Jambalaya on the Bayou" video.
By the way, I am not sending my readers to any other links that may be on the same page. Link advisory: some sites may contain tasteless or downright raunchy You Tube videos that is sure ruin your appetite for good food.

This is a book excerpt from my handbook series:


JAMBALAYA, the story and the recipe

For those of you who are not familiar with this kind of cooking, first things first:

South Louisiana cooking has become popular because of the wonderfully complex flavors that come from a blending of French, Spanish, Native American, Caribbean, African and other cooking cultures. It is highly adaptable to a wide range of ingredient substitutions, making it one of the most economical cooking styles around.

If you leave out any of what is known as the "holy trinity" (chopped onions, bell pepper and celery, sauteed in a small amount of oil), you have left out a little bit of the soul of Louisiana cooking. Some, like me, like to throw the "Pope" (garlic) into the pot (I suppose I coulda worded that better).

This Jambalaya recipe reflects some of my heritage: French/Native American/los Islenos Spanish. When my mother's mother's side of the family (early los Islenos, also known as Spanish Canary Island Settlers) came to the New Orleans area in the 1700s, they brought the recipes for their wonderful paella. Since all the ingredients could not be found in the area, they "made do" with what they found. Oysters, shrimp, crab, chicken, duck, alligator, crawfish, etc. replaced the clams and mussels called for in the original recipes. A long time ago, the locals around New Orleans called these improvised recipes of the los Islenos, "Jambon a la yaya". Yaya is the African word for rice. Now it is called Jambalaya, and it is delicious!

Now that you know one of the stories behind it, here's a good Jambalaya recipe. Save a bundle on the commercially boxed version that is sold nowadays.


PureCajunSunshine's JAMBALAYA (meat or meatless)

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 lb (or more) boneless & skinless meat (any kind will do: chicken breasts, rabbit, turtle, deer, alligator or just about anything that don't eat you first)

12 ounces (or more) your favorite smoked sliced sausage (I like to use Andouille, which is a delicious South Louisiana sausage that is perfect for seasoning old-time Jambalayas, Gumbos and Red Beans & Rice. Not to be confused with the continental French "andouillette", which is a tripe sausage(yuck). A good quality Keilbasa sausage may be used instead.

If going no-meat, use 4 - 6 cups cooked black-eyed peas or black beans, or 2 or 3 cans of storebought'en. Whatever you use, make sure it is flavorful and seasoned well.


1 medium-large onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 small-medium bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
(beginner cooks: a clove is a single "toe" taken from the main
bunch)
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with the juice
a few dashes (about a teaspoon)of your favorite hot pepper
sauce (preferably Louisiana hot sauce)
2 tablespoons or more of your favorite cooking oil
1 1/2 cups of water (or stock/bouillion for extra flavor)
salt & pepper to taste
4 to 6 cups hot cooked rice
1/2 - 1 teaspoon Cajun spice blend, more or less, to taste

Cajun spice blends are found in groceries almost everywhere in Southern America nowadays, because a good thing is hard to hide...(Just curious, is it available in Northern states??) For our friends in other lands, a recipe for a famous Cajun seasoning blend will follow Jambalaya recipe.

Nice touches, if you have it: 1 teaspoon filé powder (powdered Sassafras leaf, and pronounced FEE-lay); 2 tablespoons sun-dried tomato sauce/spread (such as Classico brand or something similar; 1 cup fresh green onion tops, chopped. The filé powder and green onion tops are added at the very end of cooking. Wild edibles such as chickweed, cattail roots, violet leaves, etc. can be added to Jambalaya.


DIRECTIONS:

Heat a large, heavy dry pan over medium-high heat. Cast iron is always good. Add a very tiny amount of cooking oil to coat the bottom of the pot. Add sliced sausage. Cook until browned (about 30 minutes). At this point it is ok if some of the browning sausage (and added meat) sticks to the bottom of the pot. This will give the Jambalaya extra flavor and a nice brown color. Remove sausage, keeping the drippings in the pan for next step. Cut chicken (or whatever meat you have on hand)into half-inch pieces and brown in remaining oil. Return sausage to pan and add onion, celery, garlic and peppers. Cook over medium heat until the the vegetables are almost tender. Add tomatoes and their juice, along with a cup of water (or stock/bouillion). Stir well. If you have bits of meat stuck to the pot, remove from heat and allow to cool a little. Work the bits loose with a large spoon. Return to heat, turned low. Add Cajun spices and hot sauce, stir well, cover and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes to an hour, depending on taste preferences or time allowance. Add cooked rice, stir well and heat through.

For a one-dish meal, I sometimes add a bit of cooked okra, collard, mustard or turnip greens (leftover or canned), canned corn, black beans, etc. Adjust your seasonings according to the amount of extra veggies or beans that have been added.


MAKE YOUR OWN CAJUN SEASONING:


Here is a recipe for Emeril's Bayou Blast. This homemade version is not as complex as the commercial version, but it'll do:

2 1/2 T. paprika
2 T salt
2 T garlic powder
1 T onion powder
1 T black pepper
1 T cayenne pepper powder
1 T oregano, dried and crumbled fine
1 T thyme, dried and crumbled fine

Combine all ingredients, mix well. Pour into a clean salt shaker.
Use on just about anything. Sprinkle generously before cooking.



This recipe is from Tony Chachere's Cajun Country Cookbook:

Tony Chachere's All-Purpose Creole Seasoning

1 box (26-oz) Morton's free flowing salt
1 box (1 1/2 oz) ground black pepper
1 bottle (2-oz) ground red pepper
1 bottle (1-oz)pure garlic powder
1 bottle (1-oz) chili powder
1 carton (1-oz) Monosodium glutamate (Accent)

Mix well and use like salt. When it's salty enough, it's "seasoned to perfection". Use generously on everything.

Tips: To season seafood use half of the above mixture and add:

1 tsp powdered thyme
1 tsp bay leaf
1 tsp sweet basil



Ça c'est bon! (that's good!),
PureCajunSunshine


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