jambalaya to serve 8-10

Photo by Ken Williams of the Concord Monitor

To make the jambalaya, you first need to gather all the ingredients....

Start by heating 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large heavy pot over med/high heat.
Sprinkle 3 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs with salt and pepper and brown in batches, being careful not to crowd pan.

Turn, using tongs when nicely browned, which takes about 4 minutes a side.

When all the chicken is browned, set it aside in a large bowl.
Add 1 pound kielbasa which has been cut into 1/4 inch slices to the empty pan.
Cook the kielbasa for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until lightly browned.

Remove kielbasa with a slotted spoon and add to the reserved chicken.
Cut 2 red peppers, 4 ribs of celery and one medium onion into small dice.
Mince 4 cloves of garlic.
Turn the heat to medium low and dump all the veggies and garlic into the pot.

Cook over medium heat until vegetables and soft and shiny, stirring frequently.

Keep stirring so that the veggies don't stick to the bottom of the pot.
Add a teaspoon or two more oil if the veggies are sticking and the pot seems dry.

Add one and a half cups rice and give it a good stir to get the rice nicely coated with the oil.

Add 2 cans of "original recipe" stewed tomatoes,
3 cans of chicken broth,
2 bay leaves and several grindings of fresh pepper.
Add back the reserved chicken and the kielbasa and push down to submerge into the liquid.

Simmer over medium heat about 20 minutes until rice is fully cooked. Serve immediately if you like your Jambalaya soupy, or let simmer longer. The rice will continue to expand. You may need to add more chicken broth to the leftovers.