Chicken & Prawn Jambalaya

📝 Ingredients

• 400 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 200 g raw peeled prawns
• 300 g long-grain rice
• 1 green pepper
• 2 celery sticks
• 1 brown onion
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 tin of chopped tomatoes (400 g)
• 1 chicken stock cube dissolved in 550 ml hot water
• 2 tsp smoked paprika and ½ tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Large casserole dish with lid
• Cutting board and knife
• Measuring jug
• Wooden spatula
• Fork

📖 Steps

1. Cut the chicken into 2 to 3 cm cubes and season with salt and pepper. Deseed the pepper and dice it. Thinly slice the celery. Peel and slice the onion, and chop the garlic. Dissolve the stock cube in the hot water.
2. Heat the oil in the casserole over a medium-high heat. Brown the chicken for 5 to 6 min, turning it, until well coloured on all sides: it will finish cooking with the rice. Set aside on a plate.
3. Put the onion, pepper and celery in the same casserole. Cook for 5 min over a medium heat, stirring, until the vegetables soften. Add the garlic, smoked paprika, cayenne and thyme, then stir for 30 s.
4. Add the uncooked rice and stir for 1 min to coat it well in the spices. Add the chopped tomatoes, stock and the chicken with its juices. Stir, scraping the bottom of the casserole well, then bring to a gentle boil.
5. Cover and cook for 18 min over a low heat, without lifting the lid or stirring: the rice needs to absorb the liquid gently. If you smell burning, turn the heat down further and add 50 ml water.
6. Lift the lid: the rice should be almost tender and the liquid almost absorbed. Arrange the prawns on top, pressing them in slightly, cover and cook for another 4 to 5 min, until pink and opaque.
7. Turn off the heat and leave to rest, covered, for 5 min. Gently fluff up with a fork, mixing the prawns into the rice. Taste, adjust the salt, then serve piping hot, straight from the casserole.