This Jambalaya makes the best week night dinner and is a great way to use up any leftover meat you might have on hand!

Sometimes you have to get creative in the kitchen when you don’t have a specific ingredient, and the same is true when you have too much of something else. Like leftovers…if you have leftover ham, cooked shrimp, bacon or sausage, this recipe for Jambalaya is a great way to put those leftovers to good use.

If you are a meat lover, this one pot jambalaya is for you! It’s packed with bacon, ham, shrimp and sausage plus loads of cajun flavor. You can cook it all in one pot (yay for easy clean up!) too!

What is Jambalaya?

Jambalaya is a dish from the Louisiana area of the United States. It was influenced by the different cultures that live there – Spanish, French and West African. It mostly consists of meat, traditionally sausage, chicken and seafood, along with vegetables and rice. The great thing about it is that you can use pretty much any of your favorite meats or leftovers you have on hand and it will turn out amazing!

Can you freeze Jambalaya or make it ahead?

Jambalaya is a great make-ahead dinner. You can make all the components and assemble it then keep it in the fridge overnight. This will help all the flavors mingle and get extra yummy. The next day just pull it out and bake it as normal. You could also make it up to months in advance and freeze it. If you do plan to freeze it, make sure you don’t add the rice until you’re ready to bake it. The rice will get very soggy and kind of disintegrate as it thaws if you freeze it.

Ingredients needed for Jambalaya:

6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 onion, diced
1 cup celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups green pepper, chopped
1/2 lb polish sausage, cut up
1 cup long grain rice, uncooked
1 28oz can tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon thyme
fresh ground pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 lb ham, diced
1 lb shrimp, uncooked (If using cooked shrimp, stir in at the end to heat through.)

How to make Jambalaya:

In a heavy Dutch oven, cook the bacon. Move the cooked bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel. Drain most of the bacon drippings out, leaving a little in the pot. Cook the onion, celery, green peppers and garlic in the bacon drippings. Remove it all and add the sausage to brown.
Preheat your oven to 350. Stir rice into onion mixture and cook, stirring for 5 minutes. Add in the rest of the other ingredients.
Cover the pot with an oven proof lid and bake for 30-40 minutes.
Now add the shrimp and cook 15 minutes more.

Easy Homemade Jambalaya

Jambalaya makes the best week night dinner and is a great way to use up any leftover meat.

Author Kami | NoBiggie.net

Ingredients

6 slices bacon cooked and crumbled
1 onion diced
1 cup celery chopped
1 clove garlic minced
2 cups green pepper chopped
½ pound polish sausage cut up
1 cup long grain rice uncooked
1 28oz. can tomatoes
½ teaspoon thyme
fresh ground pepper to taste
2 tablespoons cajun seasoning
2 cups chicken broth
½ pound ham diced
1 pound shrimp uncooked If using cooked shrimp, stir in at the end to heat through.

Instructions

In heavy Dutch oven, cook the bacon. Move the cooked bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel. Drain most of the bacon drippings out, leaving a little in the pot. Cook onion, celery, green peppers and garlic in bacon drippings. Remove it all and add the sausage to brown.
Preheat your oven to 350. Stir rice into onion mixture and cook, stirring for 5 minutes. Add in the rest of the other ingredients.
Cover the pot with an oven proof lid and bake for 30-40 min.
Now add shrimp and cook 15 minutes more.

Making This Recipe? Tag us on Instagram: @NoBiggie using the hashtag #NoBiggieRecipes, so we can see what you are making in the kitchen!