Jambalaya

Here's my recipe/guide for making one of my favorite one-pot comfort foods...Jambalaya! While there are no connections with this dish to Newfoundland or New England (its actually a cajun dish from New Orleans), I feel it has a lot of appeal to east coast palettes and lifestyles. For one, what's better than a warm one-pot, hearty meal on a cold winter evening such as we have outside right now. Secondly it has great ingredients available year round, and includes chicken, sausage and shrimp, all ingredients we love here down-east. While whole or diced gulf shrimp are traditional down in the south, I like to use whole Maine or Newfoundland cold water shrimp in my jambalaya. One of the beauties about a dish like this is that you can interchange ingredients based on what you have and what you like. It can be all meat, all seafood, with sausage, without sausage, chicken breast, or chicken thighs, white rice or brown rice. You get the picture. The key here is to have good quality ingredients, cook the rice just right and have it all well seasoned with creole spice. You can use a store bought cajun or creole spice mix or just make your own.

Here's how I like to make mine. I use either boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs, and good andouille sausage if I can find it. If not I substitute Spanish chorico sausage.

Cajun Jambalaya (serves 6)

Ingredients:
4-6 ounces of andouille sausage (or other similar dry pork sausage), cut in to 1/4 inch thick slices
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or 6 boneless, skinless thighs), cut into 1 inch cubes
8 ounces uncooked shrimp
1 large yellow onion, 1/4 inch dice,
1 stalk celery, halved and diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
3-5 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced (optional)
1 cup long grain rice (white or brown)
1 large tomato, diced
3 cups chicken stock
1 bay leaf
1 Tbsp Creole Seasoning (recipe follows), plus a sprinkle at the end

Directions:

I like to first saute the sliced andouille sausage, reserve and then saute the chicken in the drippings and reserve it. I then saute the vegetables, followed by the rice, seasoning and stock, and finish with the shrimp and reserved sausage and chicken. I finish it off with some fresh parsley and hot sauce to taste.

In a large, deep skillet, saute slice sausage over medium heat until browned and it has released some of its fat.Reserve the sausage to the side. Turn heat to medium high and sear the cubed chicken in the drippings. Season with a little Creole. spice. Brown the chicken but don't worry about cooking it all the way through as it will go back in the mix. Once browned, set aside.

In the same pan, add a tablespoon of oil if necessary and add the onion, celery and diced peppers. Cook until vegetables are tender. Add the garlic and tomatoes and cook for a minute or so. Add the rice and remaining tablespoon of Creole spice and coat the rice in the oil and vegetables. Add the bay leaf and chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook (stirring occasionally) until the rice is tender and the liquid is mostly absorbed...about 15 minutes. Add the raw little shrimps, the sausage and chicken, mix well and cover. Continue cooking for another 10 minutes or so until the shrimp and chicken are completely cooked and the rice is done. Serve with parsley and a few splashes of hot sauce if you like a little more heat. The sausage should pack a little punch. Enjoy!


Wicked Good Creole Seasoning
Combine the following spices in a jar with a tight fitting lid.
4 Tbsp Paprika
2 Tbsp Cayenne Pepper
2 Tbsp Garlic powder
2 Tbsp Onion Powder
2 Tbsp Black Pepper
1 Tbsp Ground Thyme
1 Tbsp dried Oregano
1 Tbsp Kosher Salt

Wicked Good Newfoundland Seafood Chowder

I am always thinking about food. What to eat and how to cook it. Through food, A Wicked Scoff has allowed me to blend my Newfoundland culture and heritage with my newly found New England influences and excursions.

When thinking of a meal to share with Downhome Magazine as a column featuring A Wicked Scoff for the January issue (http://www.downhomelife.com), I was drawn to seafood chowder. Here in New England, chowder is king and a variety of “chowda’s” as they say, namely clam, cod, and lobster, can be found in every restaurant and diner. Simply put, chowder is the ultimate east coast comfort food. One of the best chowders I ever had was at a Vermont ski chalet where it was served in a bread bowl. To me, nothing says comfort and warmth like sitting in front of a roaring fire with a piping bowl of rich, creamy chowder filled with succulent seafood. With all the seafood available in Newfoundland, such as cod, salmon, shrimp and scallops, chowder would make the perfect winter meal. Whether you choose to make this recipe as a first course for you New Year’s Eve dinner party, or back home after a day out snowmobiling or ice fishing, this chowder promises to satisfy. When you’re done I hope you can say it was a wicked scoff!
  

Wicked Good Seafood Chowder

Ingredients:

·         2 pounds cod

·         1 pound each of salmon and shrimp (medium)

·         ½ pound of scallops

·         2 cups each of onion, celery, and carrots, diced

·         5 medium potatoes, diced

·         2 - 32 oz cartons seafood stock (or use homemade)

·         2 ½ sticks butter

·         1 ½ cups flour

·         2 cups heavy cream

·         6 cups whole milk

·         1 Tbsp Savory

·         salt and pepper

Directions:

In a large stockpot, melt ½ a stick of butter over medium heat, and
sauté the onion, celery and carrots for 5 minutes. Season with a little salt and black pepper. Add remaining butter and the flour and using a wooden spoon, stir the butter and flour together to make a paste (a roux), which will thicken the chowder. Cook the roux for a minute and increase the heat to medium high. Gradually add the two cartons of seafood stock, stirring as you go. Make sure to stir out any lumps that may have formed in the roux. Add the potatoes and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the heavy cream and the milk, and return the chowder to a low simmer. It is now important not to boil the chowder, as the dairy may curdle. For Newfoundland twist, add dried savory. As a trick to prevent heartburn, which some complain of from savory, rub the herbs in the palm of your hand to break it into smaller pieces. Cut the cod and salmon into 1-inch chunks, quarter the scallops and de-vein and remove the shells from the shrimp. Once the chowder begins to thicken, add the seafood to the pot and stir occasionally. Cook for approximately 10 more minutes on a gentle simmer until the chowder has thickened, the potatoes are tender, and the seafood is cooked. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust seasoning accordingly. Ladle into bowls or homemade bread boules, and top with crackers. A few scrucnhins on top wouldn’t go astray either! This will make a big pot of chowder, and will feed a crowd. I find is even tastier the next day and you will want leftovers. Enjoy!