For the "pasta":
- 2 boneless skin-less chicken thighs, diced and dusted with Cajun seasoning
- 2 Italian hot sausages, decased and broken into small pieces
- ½ medium yellow onion, diced
- 8 ounces crimini mushrooms, cleaned and diced
- at least 6 garlic cloves sliced crosswise as thin as possible (you know the Goodfellas scene?)
- ¼ cup white wine
- About a half jar of Mia's Kitchen Vodka Pasta Sauce
- 1 14 ounce can Mutti Baby Roma Tomatoes
, drained and broken up
- 2 zucchini
Using your KitchenAid Spiralizer Attachment
(you do have one, don't you?), process the zucchini into zoodles, toss them with a pinch of kosher salt and a heavy pinch or two of McCormick Gourmet Collection Cajun Seasoning
, and wrap in paper towels to drain off as much liquid as possible.
Heat your trusty All-Clad Tri-Ply Stainless 3 Qt Saute Pan
(you do have one, don't you?) over medium-high heat for a few minutes. Add a couple of dashes of (non-EVOO) olive oil and when the oil just starts to shimmer add the chicken and sausage. Cook the meats (stirring occasionally) until they just start to brown. Using a slotted spoon remove the meat to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Eyeball the fat remaining in the pan. If it's about a tablespoon you're good to go. If it's more, blot some up with a paper towel. If it's less, add some (non-EVOO) olive oil.
Add the onions to the pan, lightly season with a small pinch of kosher salt and Cajun seasoning, reduce heat to medium, and sauté until they are translucent. Add the mushrooms and sauté until they are tender. Add the garlic slices and sauté for another 30 seconds. By now you should have built up a substantial fond on the bottom of the pan. Add the white wine, crank the heat to full blast, and deglaze the pan, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium. Add the pasta sauce and tomatoes. Cook for a couple of minutes and then taste. Adjust seasoning with sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, and Cajun seasoning to taste. (I like mine very spicy. I cook with basic Morton Kosher Salt
but I finish recipes with Maldon Sea Salt
.)
Add the zoodles to the pan, return the sauce to a simmer, and cook for 4-6 minutes or until the zoodles are al dente. Zoodles exude a lot of liquid, so you may want to hit the sauce with some Wondra flour to thicken it at the end.
Most true cajuns would blanch at the idea of jambalaya without bell peppers. I omitted them, but you may want to add diced green and red bell peppers with the onions.
Jambalaya is not really a wine dish. If one must have wine (and I must), an off-dry white would be a good choice, especially if you cranked up the spice. If you can find one, an "extra dry" domestic sparkling wine would be a great choice. Slight sweetness to counter the heat of the spices with refreshing bubbles to scrub the palate.
But I wanted red wine, so I popped a Ridge Ponzo Zinfandel (Russian River Valley) 2013. When drunk with spicy food most red wines just taste like tannin and alcohol. For some reason, however, Zinfandel does okay with spicy food.
The 2013 Ridge Ponzo is 93% Zinfandel and 7% Petite Sirah. Deep purple with no sediment at this point. Medium strong bouquet suggesting raspberry, blueberry, and warm spices. On the palate, it suggests ripe berry fruit, prunes,and a dash of pepper. This is not a complex wine nor a wine for the cellar, but for short-term drinking with this sort of meal it's very enjoyable. Grade: 88
