Jambalaya on the Grill
I do all my cooking – and dishes – outside now. It’s kind of like camping, with real beds.
The grill is my new BFF. Really, it’s amazing what you can do on it. I’m wondering if I even need a stove. I’m getting so used to cooking in my back yard that I might not want to go back into my kitchen even if it does miraculously get finished. This morning I made jambalaya on it.
I came across this recipe called “camping jambalaya” – I don’t know what kind of crazy camping cooks are out there, but I’m not this ambitious when I’m cooking over a campfire and sleeping in a tent. To me, camping is an excuse to eat hot dogs and Cheezies. I’m pretty sure you won’t find me mincing garlic at a campsite any time soon. However. You can grill the meat bits (sausage, chicken and shrimp) on the barbecue, and the rest of the bits in your cast iron skillet on the barbecue, then simmer the lot together with rice and tomatoes and stock and turn out a pretty decent meal without heating up the house, or while you have a gaping chasm where your kitchen used to be.
(This is noticeably lacking chicken – only because when I went to get the thighs from the freezer, the frostbitten bag wasn’t actually chicken thighs. I need to learn to label my freezer packages. The jambalaya was still delicious.)
Jambalaya on the Grill
AuthorJuliePreheat the grill to medium-high and set a large, heavy cast iron skillet directly on grate. Place the chicken thighs and sausage on the grill alongside it and cook, turning, until charred and cooked through. Remove to a wood cutting board and when it's cool enough to handle, cut into bite-sized pieces.
Meanwhile, add a drizzle of oil to the skillet, and when it's hot add the onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes or until softened. Add the tomato paste and cook for another minute, then stir in the tomatoes, scraping up browned bits. Mix in the rice, spices, thyme and bay leaves. Add the stock; season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Move the pan to a cooler spot (or reduce the heat), cover with foil, and simmer until almost all the liquid is absorbed, 20–30 minutes.
Season shrimp with salt and pepper; quickly cook on the hot grill, then mix into the rice along with the chicken and sausage. Toss to combine and top with parsley.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the grill to medium-high and set a large, heavy cast iron skillet directly on grate. Place the chicken thighs and sausage on the grill alongside it and cook, turning, until charred and cooked through. Remove to a wood cutting board and when it's cool enough to handle, cut into bite-sized pieces.
Meanwhile, add a drizzle of oil to the skillet, and when it's hot add the onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes or until softened. Add the tomato paste and cook for another minute, then stir in the tomatoes, scraping up browned bits. Mix in the rice, spices, thyme and bay leaves. Add the stock; season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Move the pan to a cooler spot (or reduce the heat), cover with foil, and simmer until almost all the liquid is absorbed, 20–30 minutes.
Season shrimp with salt and pepper; quickly cook on the hot grill, then mix into the rice along with the chicken and sausage. Toss to combine and top with parsley.
I wanna go camping with whomever made this out there in the wild, looks fantastic! Makes the procrastinating of oven-hunt a little easier I bet, delicious 😀 x
I really like this idea of cooking Jambalaya on the grill. I should try it. Looks so good.
This looks delicious, Julie! It helps that you don’t have a kitchen in the summer…hopefully it will get all finished before November!!
We had jambalaya last night, too. My guy cooked it because it was a little bit cooler last night so we didn’t want only salad.
He did it with hot Italian sausage, chicken legs, and a bag of frozen shrimp and clams tat we had. He cooked his rice separately (I can’t eat the starch) and added tomato sauce and spices. And spinach.
It was soo good!
🙂
It’s funny.. I hardly ever make jambalaya. Ever! But really it’s like Creole hamburger helper, only with sausage and rice…
“I’m wondering if I even need a stove. I’m getting so used to cooking in my back yard that I might not want to go back into my kitchen even if it does miraculously get finished.”
Ummm….. isn’t it about 40 below about 5 months of the year there?
True Wendy! I was thinking the same! 🙂
Thank you so much for this recipe! I am an ambitious camp cook because it is our only vacation every year. If I am sleeping in a tent and washing dishes in a rubber bowl, then at least we are eating well!! I love one pot meals for our crew and this looks delicious. Will let you know how it turns out 🙂
Two comments:
1.This is fabulous and I had never thought to make such a thing on the grill before
2. Your grill looks very very clean. Its making me feel bad about my grill and I’ve made a note in my planner to scrub it this weekend
Love the idea of Jambalaya on a grill.. such beautiful pictures too!!
Ha – it’s funny how many people comment about how clean my grill is. The dark colour + my camera must be very forgiving… 🙂
…I may not be redoing my kitchen, but I’m definitely going to live on my grill now. Not actually live on it. Obviously. Ouch.
…But I’ll be cooking a lot more on there. Just so I can clean the dishes outside like camping. Awesome.
Tried this on the weekend and impressed the neighbors. Great recipe, I loved doing the meat on the side at the same time as the rest. 2 thumbs up!!