20 Mins
40-45 Mins
6
Main
Dairy Free
Cajun Sausage Jambalaya with KAIJU-N and OLEA432
A pot for cold nights and loud tables. Andouille (or similar sausage) brings smoke and snap. The Cajun trinity softens into sweetness. KAIJU-N lays a warm, brick-red backbone with a quiet citrus-mineral lift. OLEA432 helps the spices bloom and carries the fond into the rice for a glossy, satisfying finish. A classic cajun sausage jambalaya.
Ingredients
30 ml OLEA432 extra virgin olive oil
350 g andouille or other smoked pork sausage, sliced into 1 cm rounds
1 large onion, diced
2 celery ribs, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
14–16 g KAIJU-N Cajun seasoning blend
300 g long-grain white rice, rinsed and drained
1 × 400 g can whole peeled tomatoes, juices reserved, tomatoes hand-crushed
500–600 ml chicken stock, combined with tomato juices to total 720 ml liquid (see notes)
1 bay leaf
Fine sea salt, to taste
2 spring onions and a small handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped, for serving
Directions
Bake the sausage
Warm OLEA432 in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Brown the sausage until the edges take on color. Scoop out and hold.
Add Veggies
In the same pot, add onion, celery, and bell pepper. Sauté until lightly golden and the fond loosens. Stir in garlic and KAIJU-N for 30 seconds.
Add Rice
Stir in rice to coat. Add crushed tomatoes and the measured liquid, return sausage, add bay leaf, and season with salt. Bring to a lively simmer.
Reduce and Serve
Reduce to low, cover, and cook 20–25 minutes until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Rest off heat, covered, 10 minutes.
Serve: Fluff gently. Finish with spring onion and parsley. Serve hot.
Nutrition & Chef Notes
Classic structure: rice, meat, and the Cajun “holy trinity” of onion, bell pepper, and celery. Andouille is the traditional smoked sausage.
Sausage Alternatives: Kielbasa, Chorizo, Bratwurst, Morteau or Cervelat. In professional Cajun cookbooks, chefs often suggest that “any good Polish kielbasa” can stand in for andouille when it’s unavailable. Various culinary blogs also list Mexican chorizo, kielbasa, and German bratwurst as practical alternatives for capturing smoky dimension in jambalaya.
Liquid math made easy: aim for roughly 2 parts liquid to 1 part rice by volume, counting tomato juices toward the total. For 300 g rice (about 1.5 cups), measure combined stock and tomato juice to 720 ml.
Browning sausage first builds fond that the vegetables release, deepening flavor without extra steps.
Stovetop jambalaya timings of about 20–30 minutes covered are common in top-rated recipes. Resting keeps grains intact and steamy.
Paleo option: swap 600 g cauliflower rice. Reduce total liquid to about 250 ml, simmer the sauce base 10 minutes, then fold in cauliflower rice and cook uncovered 5–7 minutes until just tender.
Why It Works
Layered technique meets measured hydration. Browning the sausage, softening the trinity, and blooming KAIJU-N in OLEA432 stacks savory depth before the rice goes in. Measuring stock with tomato juices hits the sweet spot for tender grains without mush, a method echoed by rigorous jambalaya testing and consistent in five-star crowd favorites.
