Vegan Jambalaya, a beautiful meatless alternative for a dish that traditionally has chorizo, chicken, and shrimp.
The smokey flavour of the chorizo is mimicked by the use of smoked paprika.
Ingredients:
- 115 g basmati rice
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tin lima beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes
- 3 celery stalks
- 1 jalapeño, deseeded (0ptional for spicyness)
- 1 green bell pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
- 1 yellow/red bell pepper, deseeded and rougly chopped
- 1 big onion, peeled and roughly chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp thyme
- 2 tbsp sweet smoked paprika
- 250 ml veggy stock
- cajun seasoning (optional, just adds a little more oomph)
- bunch of parsley, finely chopped
- salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Recipe:
- Start with the ‘trinity’ of Jambalaya: onion, bell pepper & celery. Fry these gently in a big pan in some olive oil, add some salt & pepper, and stir occasionally until the veggies are starting to soften
- Add the garlic, herbs, and bay leaves, stirring for a few minutes
- Stir the tomato puree through the veg, and scrape the bottom of the pan for any brown bits
- Add the tomatoes, beans, and chickpeas, and stir for a few minutes to make sure all flavours are properly mixed
- Add the rice and -while stirring continuously- fry this another few minutes
- Add the stock, and make sure everything is just about covered in liquid. If it isn’t, add a little more stock to be sure
- Bring to a boil, cover, and let gently simmer for 20-25 minutes until the rice has absorbed all the moisture (check after ~15 minutes if it isn’t too dry, might need more liquid depending on your heat/rice/etc)
- Take the pan away from the fire, stir through the parsley, and serve piping hot
Enjoy!