Vegans and meat eaters alike love jambalaya. It’s an easy dish to make for a dinner party, and it’s filling to boot. I like to use Italian sausage and chicken-flavored seitan as proteins, but you can use tempeh, tofu, or even red beans as the center attraction if you want. I usually use white jasmine rice, but any rice will work. Brown rice will require a little more cooking time, but it adds tons of nutrients.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil (water sauté)
- 1 medium-size onion, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 or 3 large vegan Italian sausage links, cut into half-moons, or steamed tempeh cubes (use gluten-free)
- 1 to 2 cups (225 to 450 g) cubed chicken-flavored seitan, store-bought or homemade (shown here), or cubed firm tofu (gluten-free option) marinated in 2 tablespoons (12 g) vegan chicken-flavored bouillon, or 4 tablespoons (24 g) DIY Golden Bouillon and 1 cup (235 ml) water.
- 1 green bell pepper, cored and chopped
- 1 red or orange bell pepper, cored and chopped
- 1 can (14½ ounces, or 406 g) diced tomatoes or 1½ cups (340 g) Preserve-the-Harvest Diced Tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce (to taste)
- 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
- ½ teaspoon liquid smoke or smoked paprika
- ¼ to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes or chipotle chile powder (to taste)
- 3 cups (705 ml) water, plus more as needed
- 2 tablespoons (12 g) vegan chicken-flavored bouillon or 4 tablespoons (24 g) DIY Golden Bouillon
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Before Serving
- 1½ cups (293 g) uncooked rice
How to Make It
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The Night Before
- Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and sauté the onion until translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute longer. Combine the sautéed onion and cut-up sausage, tofu, and bell peppers in a large airtight container and store in the refrigerator. In the Morning
- Combine the sautéed onion, sausage, seitan or tofu, bell peppers, tomatoes, hot sauce, Cajun seasoning, paprika, red pepper flakes, water, bouillon, and salt and pepper in the slow cooker. Cook on low for 7 to 9 hours. 1 Hour Before Serving
- Add the rice. If the mixture looks dry, add 1 to 2 cups (235 to 470 ml) extra water. Turn up the slow cooker to high and cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour longer. Check occasionally to make sure it doesn’t overcook. Taste and adjust the seasonings.
