Fat Tuesday by way of Austin, Texas

Growing up we used to visit Louisiana a lot, my parents met and got engaged there so the state (and New Orleans) holds fond memories for them...my sister and I were just lucky enough to tag along for the ride. We would tour the plantations (no wonder I love history, at a young age my parents would drag us through historic buildings!), wander the French Quarter and take in all the good Cajun food we could eat! I think my sister and I were the only kids in our elementary school who walked around Bourbon Street with their families! Needless to say there isn't a huge offering of quality Cajun in Austin, there are a few places that are good but for the most part it's just not the same. So for this Fat Tuesday (for those of you not in the know, that's the last day of Mardi Gras), I decided to dish up some home-cooked Cajun......one order of Chicken, Crawfish and Sausage Jambalaya please!

Chicken, Crawfish & Sausage Jambalaya
5 Ribs Chopped Celery
3 Cloves, Peeled and Minced Garlic
1 Cup Minced Onion
1 Chopped Yellow Bell Pepper
1 Chopped Green Bell Pepper
1 Chopped Large Chicken Breast
1 Lb Cleaned and Deveined Crawfish Tails
16oz Sliced Smoked Sausage
2 Cups Uncooked Rice
32 oz Chicken Stock
1/2 Cup Chopped Flat Leaf Parsley
2 Tsp Worcester Sauce
1/2 Tsp White Pepper
1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
1/2 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 Tsp Salt




1. Saute onion, bell peppers, celery and garlic in a deep cast iron pan until it becomes tender.
2. Brown chicken and sausage in pan with veggies, add worcester sauce and seasonings.
3. Once chicken is no longer pink, add rice and stock to pot. Bring to a boil, taste for seasoning. Add parsley to mixture. Reduce heat and simmer until rice is cooked.
4. Once rice is cooked, fold in crawfish meat. Top with extra parsley and serve with crusty warm French Bread.