The Commissioner of Tailgating’s Jambalaya

To say I love the food traditional to Louisiana is an understatement. It’s not unusual for me to feel like I am suffering from withdrawals after a New Orleans trip. Having said that, let’s talk about Cajun food. Until recently, if you wanted some legit Cajun food, you had to fix it yourself. Back in the 90s, we had a little dive in Pulaski years ago and the chef whipped up Cajun dishes a few times a week and he would sell out in no time. Unfortunately that place is gone. We are fortunate to have another cafe where Fridays are reserved for Cajun fare. The food served at both places was equal to what you were served in the French Quarter.

Where did I get my recipe? In 2002, I met Joe Cahn at a Tennessee Titans Caravan. The company I work for owned the local radio station which put our town on the map for one of the stops by the Titans Radio crew and select football players. JR, a client, and friend, affectionately known to us as “The Bar-B-Gator Man” and his crew graciously prepared ribs, chicken and an assortment of other meats on a massive smoker for the community to enjoy.

That year in particular, Joe Cahn was going to Tailgate at a Titans game and was visiting his friend Jeffrey. This is how it came about for Joe’s guest appearance and that is how I met The Commissioner of Tailgating. He had lots of stories to tell and was a very humble man. I remember discussing and eating jambalaya and asking for his recipe. He pointed me to his website for the official recipe. I printed a copy in August 2002 which you will find below.

Flash forward to January 2019 and the announcement of Joe’s death. I was saddened to hear this news. More so, I was shocked to hear Joe was the founder of the New Orleans School of Cooking. Andy and I had visited NOSOC the year before. I bought a bottle of “Joe’s Stuff” seasoning not realizing this wonderful blend was the same Joe I had a brief encounter with many years ago. I used it in the big pot of jambalaya I fixed last weekend. I think it was even better.

I stick with chicken and smoked sausage but Joe says “if it walks, crawls, swims or flies you can throw it in the pot.”

The original recipe is below and my measurements are in parentheses. You can cut the ingredients in half to reduce the quantity as this recipe will feed a lot of people. *I add 1/2 cup more of chicken stock since we normally don’t eat this right away.

INGREDIENTS:

1-1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into 1-inch pieces

Salt and ground black pepper to season chicken

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1-1/2 lbs sausage, cut in 1/4-inch slices (2 packs)

4 cups chopped sweet onion (3 medium)

2 cups chopped celery (around 3 large stalks)

2 cups chopped green bell pepper (1 yellow, 1 red pepper)

1 tbsp minced garlic

5-1/2 cups chicken stock (or water flavored with chicken bouillon)

2 tbsp Kitchen Bouquet 

2 tbsp seasoning salt (Joe’s Stuff)

4 cups uncooked long grain white rice

2 cups sliced green onion (1 bundle)

DIRECTIONS:

The hardest part about fixing jambalaya is all the chopping you have to do. Chicken, sausage, peppers, onions, and celery should be cut ahead of time. The night before is ideal.

Pre-measure spices and Kitchen Bouquet browning sauce. This comes together pretty quickly once the veggies are sweated.

Season chicken with salt and pepper; brown in hot vegetable oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. 

Add sausage; cook 5 to 7 minutes. Remove chicken and sausage from pan; set aside. 

Add onions, celery, green peppers and garlic to pot and cook until vegetables begin to soften. Stir in chicken stock, reserved chicken and sausage, seasoning salt and Kitchen Bouquet. 

Bring to a boil; add rice and return to a boil, cover and reduce heat to simmer. Cook 10 minutes; remove cover and stir. I clearly remember Joe telling me how important it was at this point  to quickly get the rice turned from the bottom of the pot to the top for the rice to finish cooking properly. I use a large, stainless steel spoon to do this and the rice doesn’t have any crunchy bits in it.

Replace cover and cook 15 to 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. Stir in green onions or sprinkle on the top of individual servings.

My well-worn Jambalaya recipe. Joe said, "just go on the internet and print a copy," when I asked him for his recipe.