No Bell Pepper Jambalaya

So many pans!

I hate bell peppers. I don't want to! I used to love them. When I was a kid, I'd eat raw bell peppers by the bag. But now? Cooked, uncooked, any color, I just detest them.

This makes it difficult to make Cajun food.

But I love jambalaya!

Yay Mailliard reaction!

So today I decided to cheat, and make it without the Cajun holy trinity. It's not authentic. And it's delicious!

Also, I'm normally all about my one-pot, few step meals. But today's a rainy Saturday, and I organized all my kitchen cupboards and drawers today, so I decided to indulge in a multi-step process, even though I didn't have to.

This is really ingredient heavy, but you could totally skip a bunch of these steps, and throw it all in one pot to cook. I'll indicate which steps you can just leave out, if you want.

(This recipe was inspired by this and this.)

No Bell Pepper Jambalaya

Ingredients

This is not the holy trinity, but it will taste good!

Meat:
- 1 lb large raw shrimp (shell on, de-veined, if you're doing all the steps. Shell off if you're not)
- ~ 1/2 lb skinless, boneless chicken thighs
- 1 pkg andouille sausage (I prefer the ones with pork, but use what you prefer)
- 1/2 package bacon 

Veggies:
- 1 yellow onion
- 1 white onion
- 1-2 jalapeno peppers (depending on your preferred spice level)
- 3 ribs celery

Spices:
- ~4 tsp smoked paprika
- ~3 tbsp Old Bay Seasoning
- ~3 tbsp Cajun Seasoning blend of your choice (used Mrs. Dash blend)
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 tsp dry thyme
- 1 tbsp gumbo file
- 2 tsp celery seed
- 1-3 tsp cayenne (depending on your desired spice level)

Other stuff:
- 2-4 tbsp butter (for sauteing in)
- 2-4 dashes Worcestershire sauce 
- a few dashes red wine vinegar
- 64 oz chicken broth
- 1 6oz can tomato paste
- 2 c uncooked rice


How to:
- Mix all your spices (paprika, old bay, Cajun seasoning, bay, thyme, gumbo file, celery seed, cayenne) together in a prep bowl. Set aside
- Slice the andouille into thin rounds, dice the bacon, and cut the chicken into small cubes
- Finely dice the onions, celery, and jalapeno. Set aside
- In a large, heavy bottomed soup pot, cook the bacon till crispy
- Fish bacon out with a slotted spoon, set aside

( If you don't have time, skip from here to then next mark)

- In batches, quick sear the shrimp on high heat, till pink on the outside, but not cooked through. Take out, put in a separate bowl
- In batches, sear the andouille on high heat, getting it crispy and almost burned. Put in bacon bowl
- In batches, sear the chicken thighs till browned on the outside. Put in bacon/sausage bowl
- When cooled, take the shrimp out of the shells, discard shells, put shrimp in meat bowl
- Reduce heat. Add all the spices to the bacon grease. Add 1-2 tbsp butter as needed, till the spices turn into a paste
- Bloom spices for 2-5 minutes till fragrant

(If you don't wanna do all that stuff, add spices to veggies, skip the blooming. De-shell shrimp, and add it along with all the meat when indicated)

- Add vinegar
- Saute onions, jalapeno, and celery in bacon grease & vinegar till soft. Longer is better. About 20 minutes?
- When they're soft, add the tomato paste & Worcestershire sauce. Stir well, cook for ~5 minutes.
- Add all the meat
- Add the broth & rice
- Reduce heat, cover
- Cook till rice is soft, and most of the sauce is absorbed. Add salt and pepper as needed.