Jambalaya

This week I attempted to make Jambalaya. My sister has told me multiple times that it is an easy dish, cheap to make and filling for her whole family. She was right.

I made the Jambalaya the easy way: I got a mix from the grocery store and all I had to add was the meat. The original recipe calls for just the mix (I used Zataran's) and a pound of meat. I used kielbasa sausage and chicken. I cooked both before putting them into the mix. The mix was super easy and it was so quick to make. In less than thirty minutes I had a meal ready for George, George A. and I to eat.

There was rice, there was meat and that was good enough for the three of us. We all had pretty generous portions and I had leftovers to take to work the next day.

None of us had ever had Jambalaya before and I can tell that we'll be having it again. There will be some tweaks and some twists, as any good recipe does, to make it a meal we'll crave again.

Changes
I do not think I'll use Kielbasa sausage again. It turned out very greasy and I had to add some spice (thank you red pepper flakes) to get it a little hotter, the way we like to eat.

While the mix was lovely, next time I'm definitely making it from scratch, that way I will know exactly what's in it and I can change the spices to make it taste the way we like it. I honestly do not think that it would take much more time to make Jambalaya from scratch. The longest thing that took to cook was the rice and that will probably take the longest from scratch.

When making the recipe from scratch, if I do have extra time I know I will be able to let the pot simmer before adding rice to it. This way the flavors can meld together and the heat will be more intense.

I'm going to use smaller portions of meat with more kinds available. When I think Jambalaya I think of a mixing of so many different things. We'll definitely have shrimp next time and possible some clam meat. Who knows, it will be interesting.

Are there any Jambalaya tricks to know to become a pro? Or at least as close as I can get to a pro living in Iowa?