Why I Love This Recipe
- 30-Minute Meal—You can’t beat a hearty, flavorful, homemade meal for your family in just 30 minutes! Perfect for a busy weeknight or when you don’t feel like cooking.
- Comforting—This easy pasta jambalaya recipe is such a perfect comfort meal on a chilly day. It will become one of your staples.
- Family Favorite—This is a huge favorite of my kids. I substitute Polska Kielbasa sausage since it’s less spicy, and they eat it up!
How to Make Pastalaya
Brown Meat: Add oil to a large skillet (minimum 12×2’’) or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Once hot, add the chicken and cook, flipping once or twice to brown on all sides (don’t cook chicken through). Remove to a bowl then add sausage and cook until browned on both sides. Add to the bowl with the chicken.
Sauté Vegetables: Reduce heat to medium then add remaining oil to the pan, scraping up any leftover browned bits from the pan. Add onions, celery, bell pepper, and garlic then sauté for 3 minutes.
Combine: Add basil, Cajun seasoning, diced tomatoes, salt, and pepper then stir well to combine. Add chicken broth, water, and dry pasta then bring mixture to a gentle boil. Add reserved meat to the pan. Reduce heat, cover pan with fitted lid, and cook for about 11 minutes. Remove lid to stir once or twice during cooking.
Make Ahead and Storage Instructions
To Make Ahead: Chop the veggies, chicken, and sausage in the morning. It will make this jambalaya pasta recipe such a breeze.Pastalaya
Serve 6
- 2 tablespoons oil , vegetable or canola or alternative
- 1 pound andouille sausages*, cut into coins
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 yellow or white onion chopped
- 4 green onions, chopped
- 3 ribs celery, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 1/2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional, for hotter spice, if desired.
- 14.5 ounce can petite diced tomatoes
- 2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 pound penne pasta, or Banza chickpea penne
Reduce heat to medium and add remaining oil to the pan, scraping up any leftover browned bits from the pan. Add onions, celery, bell pepper, and garlic then sauté for 3 minutes. Add basil, Cajun seasoning, diced tomatoes, salt and pepper then stir well to combine.
Notes
Servings size: about 2 cups pastalaya serving.Sausage: I substitute Polska Kielbasa sausage when cooking for my family, because it’s less spicy for my kids.
To Add Shrimp: Add cooked shrimp at the end, or add jumbo, uncooked shrimp during the last couple minutes of cooking.
