# Jambalaya - HELP!!



## pcheftina (Jun 15, 2008)

our office is celebrating Diversity Week and the staff will be doing a pot luck luncheon on Wednesday. I think that Jambalaya would be a great thing to make, however, I'd like to cook it today and since we don't have anything more than a microwave at the office I'm limited on how to reheat and serve it at the luncheon. I was thinking the crock pot?? Can I cook this meal in the crock pot on the day of and have it be good and tasty? I could get all the ingredients ready and put them in and let it cook at the office in the morning..... I've never made Jambalya, but am fairly accomplished in the kitchen, so the recipe doesn't really daunt me, but 
the rice cooking does - I don't want it to be undercooked or too dry.....

Or should I just use the slow cooker to reheat the jambalaya??

HELP......


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## Andy M. (Jun 15, 2008)

I'd cook the jambalaya the day before and reheat it either in the microwave or slow cooker.


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## Bigjim68 (Jun 15, 2008)

I think that the crock pot would work just fine for reheating, and the jambayala would taste better the second day.


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## simplicity (Jun 15, 2008)

I agree, the jambayala will be fine.

For the rice - sometimes I purposely cook too much rice, put it in Zip-Lock bags and freeze, then take it out and microwave.  I do this when I want to serve something over rice, like jambayala or gumbo.  It's always worked for me.

I'd think you could simply seal and keep the rice in the refrigerator a day or so, but I've never done it that way.

In the rice section of your market there may be packets on precooked rice.  They are meant to be microwaved, but they are more expensive.

Celebrate Diversity!


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## Constance (Jun 15, 2008)

I think I'd reheat it in the microwave. I'm not sure what the crock pot would do to your rice.
I did check out several crock pot jambalaya recipes, and they all called for cooking the rice separately, which wouldn't be nearly as tasty a dish as when the rice cooks in with the meat and all those good juices.


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## Uncle Bob (Jun 15, 2008)

I think the Microwave would be best for reheating...Quick, fast, and piping hot!!!!!


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## Bigjim68 (Jun 15, 2008)

I think that I would try out a batch of reheated Jambalya on myself before putting it in front of a group of people.  Most of my kitchen disasters involve failure to do just that.  The overcooking of the rice in reheating seems to me to be a valid point.  Maybe adding the precooked rice after the Jambalya is warm.  Just speculation.


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## Uncle Bob (Jun 15, 2008)

Jambalaya...is a rice dish cooked in one pot with various ingredients...not something served over rice, or something that rice is added too...
I agree with BigJim...The crokckpot reheating would make me nervous..(I've never done it) I would be concerned about a big starchy mess! 
The microwave could be used for several small batches...Quick, and hot!!!!


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## Bigjim68 (Jun 15, 2008)

OK uncle, now you've got me curious.  If you intend to microwave a dish such as Jambalaya, how would you handle the rice?  Would the rice continue cooking in the micro or, for that matter, when warming in the pot?  Would you slightly undercook the dish and finish in the micro?  How about leaving the whole dish slightly undercooked and and finish in the crockpot?  If it is for lunch, you would have 4 hours.  The only reason I thought of precooking and then adding a a few hours before serving in the crockpot, is to avoid overcooking.  On this one, I am defering to the pro.


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## Uncle Bob (Jun 15, 2008)

OK uncle, now you've got me curious. If you intend to microwave a dish such as Jambalaya, how would you handle the rice? I would cook the dish done in a pot on the stove.  I don’t think microwaving would hurt the rice when re-heating, but I would be concerned about any meats (shrimp) etc. that may/would toughen.
 
 Would the rice continue cooking in the micro or, for that matter, when warming in the pot? I don’t think so if fully cooked before warming in the microwave or pot.
 
 Would you slightly undercook the dish and finish in the micro? No! I personally wouldn’t do that.
 
 How about leaving the whole dish slightly undercooked and finish in the crockpot? It may work, but I would consider it risky, especially when up against a deadline.
 
If it is for lunch, you would have 4 hours. The only reason I thought of precooking and then adding a few hours before serving in the crock pot is to avoid overcooking. On this one, I am deferring to the pro. This may work, but again a risky process when up against a deadline unless the cook is well practiced in the method.


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## Constance (Jun 15, 2008)

What Bob says...


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## Bigjim68 (Jun 15, 2008)

Thanks Unk - I am here to learn.  One thing for sure, whatever I did, if I were cooking for the boss.  I would try my ideas out on Monday, not Wednesday.  Don't most restaurants feed the new ideas to the staff before putting them on the menu?


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## pcheftina (Jun 15, 2008)

*OK, wow....lots of things to think about.*

In that case, I'm going to make the Jambalaya the old fashioned way tomorrow night (monday) and keep it in the fridge till wednesday, then reheat in the micro at the office.....I'm pretty confident it will taste ok and if it doesn't, I'll be able to pull something together on Tuesday evening after work.

I have baked for these people on a weekly basis for almost 3 years now and even when I think it's not one of my best efforts they gush over it......I'm not sure if they are starved for good food or what, but whatever I've made, either as an appetizer, main dish, side dish or dessert, always is "the newest favorite!!"

As an aside, I really appreciate all the great people on this forum!!


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## AllenOK (Jun 21, 2008)

First, please be advised that I have not had time to read the entire thread.

Health Department guidelines state that food needs to move through the "Danger Zone" temperature range of 40 degrees F - 140 degrees F AS FAST AS POSSIBLE to minimize the amount of bacteria that grow in the food.  This is especially important for reheating.

Personally, I would reheat the jambalaya in the microwave, in portions if I had to, to get the food through that temperature range as fast as possible.  Then, I'd use the crockpot, on low, as a chafing dish just to keep the food warm.


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