Turkey Jambalaya Recipe (2024)

I’m from South Louisiana - this recipe is great. It’s more Creole than Cajun, hence the tomatoes. Louisiana isn’t always about heat, it’s about flavor and spices. I didn’t use as much cayenne but did use Ro-tel tomatoes and also used pickled pork rather than andouille as my turkey was smoked. Perfect flavors!!!

3 1/2 stars: Holy moly, this was spicy! DH and I really liked the flavors but thought the heat was a bit too intense (we both wound up with heartburn). Probably the cajun sausage but next time, I'll cut back on the ground red pepper or omit it entirely. I used shredded chicken breast instead of turkey. Pretty easy to put together on a work night.

I enjoyed this and it fed my hubby and I for 2 nights... easy and very good reheated! Hubby really liked day two with cornbread.

Super yummy!!! Next time I will use shrimp and add some okra.

So easy to make with left over turkey from a random Sunday dinner. I added some white beans and corn to the recipe. In lieu of the red pepper, I added 6 small multi colored sweet peppers. It added a really neat sweet flavor to the savoriness of this dish.

Good use of that extra turkey. I enjoy this, and it will make great lunches for the rest of the week. My teenage boys weren't that into it...a little hot for them even with using only half the cayenne pepper that was called for.

I have this dish several times....always a crowd pleaser

I thought this was a good recipe for its simplicity. It is not the best jambala recipe, but it is very easy to make and easy enough to embellish.

I thought this recipe was pretty tasty but my husband wasn't as impressed. I do want to note that to make it healthier I used turkey sausage as a substitute for the other meats which I am sure impacted the flavor some. My husband likes (and I would have to agree to some point) the darker mixes as this one was definitely more tomato based.

Cut back a bit on the cayenne as DH and I aren't big into overly-spicy food. Otherwise, followed the recipe. We found the flavor good, but nothing to write home about. And the rice seemed to take forever to cook. Doubt we'll be having this again.

I prepared this recipe last night and it was great. I did a few changes to the recipe but not much. I used a whole onion, 5 cloves of grated garlic, diced tomatoes with chilies, and some white wine. It was very flavorful and just the right amount of "heat."

Spicy, delicious, quick & easy. My family loves this recipe. I used jalapeno/cheese venison sausage b/c it's what I had on hand (any spicy sausage would work in this). The only other change was I added the sausauge just after sauteed onion & garlic. Served with green salad and french bread.

This is fantastic and we love it a lot! I have substitute thyme for oregano and that's it. The taste and the combination of ingrediants are great. Big portion and big thanks to CL for another great recipe! Will make it again for sure!

This dish was awesome!

Really disappointed in this effort. Spicy as promised, but not a lot of taste otherwise. Would never make again, even with tweaking.Followed instructions to the letter, but the rice was still too al dente.

Quick and easy. Everyone loved it. Did not change recipe at all. Quite filling. Not bad if you are watching fat and calories. Served with fresh grapes.

This recipe is excellent, will make it again and again!

So good! I made this for my boyfriend and a couple of friends who love spicy foods! They all loved it and we hardly had any leftovers. Instead of the turkey or regular sausage I used jalapeno chicken sausage, I think next time I will try it with the turkey too!

This is fantastic! I'm surprised the spice factor hasn't been mentioned, because this dish is hot. We love it (I'm from New Orleans), but for those who don't I'd cut down on the red pepper. I add a tablespoon of butter to add a little fat for flavor, but without it it's still delicious. I use fresh garlic and I add celery for flavor and texture. I also sub chicken for turkey. A quick fix is to get the roasted chicken or pre-grilled/pre-cooked chicken breasts from the grocery store. Note, using brown rice more than doubles the cooking time.

This recipe was AMAZING! The only thing I did different is I used shredded chicken instead of turkey because that's what I had available. Also, I used SMOKED paprika and I have to say it took this recipe to a whole new level. Next time, I will definitely add celery to the recipe.

Very flavorful and filling. My whole family enjoyed it - including my two young boys! I used a combination of smoked and regular paprika, substituted a poblano pepper for standard green one, and added shrimp for extra protein and flavor. Came together very quickly and was perfect for a weeknight (or special occasion meal)!

I loved this recipe, very spicy. I made it for the family, the kids couldn't eat it. I even added 2 extra cups of broth and orzo pasta. I would cut the red pepper to 1/2 teaspoon and much less olive oil. But good for those who like it spicy.

So good and filling. I quite often use ground turkey if I don't have shredded turkey available. This is better than you might think!

I make this recipe often. So much better than, and almost as easy as, those box mixes! I usually don't have the turkey so simply double the amount of sausage.

Super easy! I skipped the turkey altogether, substituted a cup of canned corn for the red bell pepper, and used chicken sausage. Fast weeknight supper!

I think my husband bought an extra huge turkey for Thanksgiving this year just so we would have enough leftovers to make this. It's really good! I added two things: a seeded jalapeno in with the peppers (we like spicy) and a can of drained and rinsed red beans at the end with the turkey and sausage. Probably not authentic, but so good... we'll make it every year, for sure.

This is delicious, easy, and a real treat. Used leftover meat from a pk. of turkey necks that I cooked for stock (strongly recommend the dark meat for this dish) and substituted Rotel tomatoes & chiles for plain diced tomato. Also used smoked paprika and doubled the seasonings (except added no salt). Served with tender steamed turnips and greens, with cornbread. Note for those who thought liquid is insufficient: Jamabalaya is a thick mixture you serve on a plate, not a soup.

Hi there, I tried this recipe today for the first time, and it is good. I used 380g chicken fillets in place of turkey as turkey is not the South African thing. I also used red cayenne pepper 1/2 tsp. not a good idea I would use less next time. For the South Africans I had some white wine from Robertson Winery. 2010 Beaukett. This was quite soothing after the cayenne pepper. I will do this again, my wife and I enjoyed it very much.

This is a good way to use up leftover turkey, but in contrast to so many of the other reviews, I really don't see it as anything particularly special. I've both eaten and made better jambalayas. That being said, if you already have a bunch of cooked turkey lying around, this is a very quick and easy way to make a tasty, hearty, and affordable meal. Certainly not a stunnning recipe, but one I will likely come back to in the days following Thanksgiving.

We have made this recipe many, many times. Sometimes I quadruple the batch and freeze what we don't eat. It may be our favorite CL recipe ever. We use shredded chicken instead of turkey and sometimes add shrimp. Second only to Coop's in New Orleans.

This dish is awesome! I will make this dish again. I used red and orange bell peppers and a little more chicken broth. I will decrease the amount of ground red pepper next time, because it is too spicy for me.

This was the best way I have found to use leftover turkey. This was very tasty and not too spicy even after doubling the amount of sausage. I will be making again and would be great for company or taking to a potluck dinner.

Fantastic recipe. I had plenty of turkey left over, and this was wonderful. I substituted brown rice and just made sure to extend the cooking time on that segment of the recipe, watch the liquid (I added a tad of chicken broth), be sure the Dutch oven was covered, and it came out wonderfully. I couldn't find andouille sausage in the market, but bought a chicken sausage w/habnero. Loved it.

Really yummy...and really spicy! I cut the red pepper down to 1/2 of the recipe and it was still too spicy.

Great flavor! We had so much left over turkey from Thanksgiving, and this was the perfect way to fix that! I used brown rice instead of white rice and cooked it in our rice cooker first with chicken broth. I also added some jalapeno pepper for more flavor. When I added the cooked rice, i used just a little more chicken broth and let simmer for 10-15 minutes. Our guests loved it!

Yummy! Alot of work, but very very good. DH and I both loved it!

Delicious! I used white rice though I normally would use brown rice since I wanted to see how the recipe worked before I made this adjustment. I used chicken instead of turkey and chicken andouille sausage. I used fresh garlic instead of bottled. I used fresh tomatoes instead of canned and increased the amount of no fat low sodium chicken broth to 2 1/2 cups to compensate for the lack of liquid from the tomatoes. The results were amazing! I will definitely make this recipe again.

Used chicken and turkey kielbasa since that's what I had. Used half smoky paprika since I recently discovered it and really like the flavor. Tomatoes had garlic, oregano and basil in the mix. Used slow-cooking, long grain brown rice so cooked it separately in the broth for 25 minutes then added it to the rest for the remaining 15 minutes. Husband really like this dish. Will make again.

Fantastic. Just spicy enough, and there is really a depth to the flavor despite the short cook time. I've made it three times, once with andouille, once with chorizo, and once with kielbasa and I have to say I thought the chorizo was best. Great as leftovers too.

This is a wonderfully tasty meal. Nice and spicy and makes a lot. Great for a cold night. I used shredded chicken instead of turkey and used half smoked paprika and half regular. It added a bit of smoky flavor. I also used brown rice. A nice salad and some cornbread was all we needed. Will definitely make this again.

Delicious!! A wonderfully spicy dish that goes well with sweet corn on the cob and fresh bread. I added an extra 2 cups of chicken broth and used fresh garlic---3 cloves minced. I also used Hillshire Farm chipotle smoked sausage and it was fabulous! Will definitely make again!

Yummy....I used ground chipotle for the ground red pepper. I followed recipe exactly and did not find it dry like others did. I also used fresh garlic for more flavor. This is the perfect recipe for leftover turkey.