re: Jambalaya help

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No, it’s a cast iron Dutch oven. So turn it down to a simmer once I drop the rice in?

I’m letting it boil until the rice has expanded a good bit.

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I’m not an expert, but I’ve never burned one. I get it back to a hard boil after the rice is added at medium high heat. I turn it down to simmer once it thickens up a bit and is a bit harder to stir. My rice is not super expanded, but it is bigger. Works for me.

Here is the original instructions:

“ After I get the taste like I want and its on a hard rolling boil i'll add the rice. Never add rice until the water is boiling! I let it come back to a boil until the rice starts to expand and is "jumping out the pot". This is an expression we use due to the hard boiling liquid and the rice entrained in the liquid sometimes comes over the side. This is a very important time relevant to the "popping" of the rice. I let the rice get noticeably bigger/expanded before I cut heat and cover. You can tell is getting ready when the rice is thickening by stirring your spoon in the mixture. As it thickens it will get noticeably harder to stir. This can be achieved on a HARD boil and it is critical to the rice popping correctly.”

I just never decided on what noticeably bigger is, so when it thickens and is harder, but not hard, to stir I cover and simmer.

I do not understand your problem. Quality ingredients and a 2 to one ratio of liquid vs rice. Return to a light boil then simmer. You gotta stir every 5 mins or so in order to not burn the rice. Cook 15 mins and leave in a covered pot for 5 or ten more mins.

get it boiling, once you add the rice in lower to a simmer and leave it covered. If i have time, i even turn the fire off when i add the rice and leave it closed for a full hour. Very important not to open it, and doing to this makes it a lot more moist to me

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I use a can of rotel every time. Never affects the color.

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I am happy to see our rotel baws come out from the shadows.

Stupid question, but can you cook a small amount in a 5 gallon pot? My brother’s in-laws have one and a burner that hasn’t been used in a decade, they said I could have it. But I don’t want it if it’s only good for large quantities.

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Are you stirring the rice until it starts cracking and the water is boiling, or are you just dropping the rice in and waiting for it to boil?

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I just make small batches at home as I live in the city in Abu Dhabi, so about a pot to make about 10 heaping servings.

After cooking the meat to tender with a nice gravy at the bottom of the pot as most of the last water boiled out, I add my mixed chicken stock and water at 2-1 ratio for the amount of water to rice I will cook in the pot. After the water/gravy/meat mixture starts boiling, I add my uncooked rice and stir for about 2 minutes slowly decreasing the heat, then when finished stirring I drop the heat to the lowest simmer it will go to, drop some onion tops in it, stir one last time and cover the lid tight. I simmer for +/- 25 minutes (don't peek), and it is perfectly cooked each time. When you check it do a careful stir, turn off the heat, and let it sit for 10-15 minutes, then ready to eat. Make sure the bottom is not slightly burned, and if slightly avoid stirring the bottom.