Jambalaya Soup

I have this habit of freezing a cup or two of stuff in ziploc freezer bags, smashed flat.  It makes it so easy to reach in there and have something to add to a dinner, or a last minute soup. Well, my freezer was getting a bit full so I was looking through those bags, thinking what to do.

Hmmm.... a bag of chopped chicken leftover from some roast chicken dinner. 
Oh, hey!  There's another bag of sliced sausage, not sure if it's Andouille or some sort of hot link.  No matter, either works for what I am thinking of.

You know how some days are just for "chillin', well, it was a grey and drizzly Sunday, perfect for an easy pot of soup.  I've made Jambalaya that's super for a crowd, and I've made a Jambalaya Sandwich that was really good too, so really, why not have a Jambalaya soup recipe too? I've purposely kept the seasonings very simple, but you could add thyme, oregano or basil if you wanted to.  Make it your own.

This came together in under 30 minutes, mainly because I already had the meat cooked and sliced, but even if you don't, this is really, really simple to make. I also think this soup would work very well in the crock pot too.  I'd cook it on high was about 2 1/2-3 hours, adding the prawns at the very end.

I didn't get a picture of the ingredients this time.... frozen quart bags of meat pressed flat do not make a very good photo, just sayin'.
 
Makes about 12 cups soup, enough for 5-6 people
Ingredients


1-2 Tbsp oil 1/2 cup white onion chopped small
1/2 bell pepper, chopped small
1/2 cup celery, chopped small (use the inner stalks & leaves)
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
1 1/2 cups chopped andouille, hotlinks or other sausage, or ham
1-2 cup small prawns or shrimp, fresh or frozen
2 15oz cans diced tomatoes and their juice
8 cups water (or stock, if you use stock, omit the bouillon or soup base below)
3-4 tbsp chicken or beef soup base, preferably a bit of both, or bouillon cubes
3 bay leaves
6-7 shakes of hot pepper sauce, like Frank's Red Hot
1/2 cup long grain rice, uncooked
Salt and Pepper to taste

 
Over medium high heat in a large soup pot, saute your onions, peppers and celery until they start to soften.  Add the crushed garlic and continue to stir.  

Add the canned tomatoes and their juice.  Add the water, ( or stock), and the soup base and stir to combine.  Dump in the chicken and the sausage (or ham) and bring to boil.  Add the bay leaves and the uncooked rice and turn the heat down to medium to simmer the soup for about 25 minutes until the rice is tender.  

If you overcook it, the rice tends to kind of 'explode' and get a little mushy, but I even like it like that!  Add the prawns and simmer until they are cooked through and warmed up.  Adjust the seasoning with hot sauce, salt and pepper.  Serve at once. You can enjoy the leftovers tomorrow, if you have any.