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Bon Appétit

Ham and Sausage Jambalaya

3.1

(18)

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Shay Harrington

You can use kielbasa or any kind of dry-cured pork sausage, but spicy andouille gives this jambalaya a nice kick of heat.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    6 to 8 Servings

Ingredients

1

pound andouille or other smoked sausage

1

pound smoked ham, cut into 1-inch pieces

1

tablespoon unsalted butter

1

white onion, finely chopped

3

celery stalks, finely chopped

1

green bell pepper, cored, finely chopped

1

red bell pepper, cored, finely chopped

Kosher salt

3

plum tomatoes, seeded, finely chopped

3

garlic cloves, finely chopped

1

jalapeño, finely chopped

2

tablespoons tomato paste

1

teaspoon finely chopped thyme

4½

cups low-sodium chicken stock

3

cups long-grain rice, rinsed

4

bay leaves

10

dashes hot sauce (preferably Tabasco)

Freshly ground black pepper

1

pound medium shrimp, peeled, deveined

¼

cup chopped scallions

½

cup chopped parsley leaves with tender stems, divided

Lemon wedges (for serving)

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Cook sausage and ham in a large pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 12 minutes; transfer to a plate. Wipe out pot.

    Step 2

    Melt butter in same pot over medium-high heat. Cook onion, celery, green pepper, red pepper, and 1 tsp. salt, stirring frequently, until onion is translucent, 10–12 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, garlic, jalapeño, tomato paste, and thyme; cook until heated through, about 1 minute. Season with salt.

    Step 3

    Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Stir in rice, bay leaves, and hot sauce. Season with salt and pepper.

    Step 4

    Return to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, 15 minutes. Uncover and stir in reserved sausage and ham. Cook until heated through, about 5 more minutes.

    Step 5

    Add shrimp, scallions, and ¼ cup parsley. Stir a few times to allow shrimp to begin cooking, then cover pot, turn off heat, and let jambalaya sit until shrimp are cooked through, 15–18 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl, then top with remaining ¼ cup parsley. Serve with lemon wedges alongside.

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Reviews (18)

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  • Great recipe full of flavor but not too spicy. My husband loved it. I would not add raw shrimp at end like they suggest unless you want raw uncooked shrimp n your jambalya. I tried it. When this failed, I took my shrimp out the rice and cooked it separately off to the side and then added it back to the jambalaya. This is recommended. The pot is not hot enough to cook the shrimp thoroughly.

    • Kitkat Sam

    • NYC

    • 10/21/2019

  • I didn’t find my shrimp was undercooked like the other commenter, but my rice needed way more liquid. I think 6 cups would have been more accurate.

    • Anonymous

    • 3/31/2020

  • This makes a lot of jambalaya, my 4.5qt pot could barely handle it. Super tasty, good amount of spice. I cooked the shrimp separately and it came out great.

    • Anonymous

    • Brooklyn

    • 4/18/2020

  • Loved it.

    • Anonymous

    • NYC

    • 9/28/2020

  • A bit dry for my taste, and not quite what I'd call a 'true' jambalaya. I'm from NOLA and tried this because it had shrimp and sausage, but the tomato paste and butter and rice made the final result more like a thick mass since the rice breaks down. Made it again and added a bit more water, less tomato paste and chicken stock, some Cajun seasoning for a layered flavor of spice, and it was much better.

    • Liz

    • NOLA

    • 1/31/2021

  • Was looking for a recipe with ham in it to feed a church group and I found this. When I finished making it, all I could think of was what a waste of a lot of good ingredients — until I thought of a possible way to save this recipe. The good news about this recipe is that it made a lot, but the bad news far outweighed any merit to making this recipe again. This “ham jambalaya” recipe was dry, the rice was too much and turned mushy when it broke down, the pot was too small for everything, the shrimp was undercooked, and it needed more Creole seasoning. The final result of this dish was very disappointing and there was no way I could afford to have all this go to waste. I was hoping to save the dish and thought to make a new gumbo base, adding more liquid, and then removed some of the excess rice from the “ham jambalaya”. After I corrected that, I added small portions of the “ham jambalaya” to my gumbo, and added just enough so it didn’t dry out my new dish. The undercooked shrimp cooked when I did this, and after fixing the seasonings, and an additional 2 hours cooking time, what I did was able to save it — but it required a lot of effort. My final product with my new recipe produced a huge pot that fed the entire church crew, and I am thankful that all these expensive ingredients and my effort didn’t go to waste. All in all, it’s not a bad recipe, but it definitely needs tweaking and I cannot recommend it.

    • Dennis

    • Fayetteville

    • 2/1/2021

  • Love this recipe but it does need some edits. I omitted the salt and pepper, added 1 extra jalapeño (both including seeds), added1 tbs of cajun seasoning to the stock, added 1/2 cup of extra stock, cooked the riced for an extra 5min, and cooked the shrimp for an extra 5min/ until they were done. FYI I use an 8qt pot and Crystal hot sauce.

    • Katie

    • New Jersey

    • 12/12/2021