Happy Cinco de Mayo: Mexican Jambalaya

It's Cinco de Mayo, which is generally a day for people to eat too many tacos and drink too many margaritas regardless of any Mexican heritage, in much the same way that St Patrick's Day is an excuse to drink to much beer and raise your blood pressure eating corned beef, regardless of whether you're actually Irish. This year it was also the day of Cinco de Mile, a 5-K race sponsored by a local sorority chapter to raise money for mental health awareness and programs in the city. It's a cause near and dear to my heart and I'm trying to form healthier habits, so I signed up with a friend in spite of being an avowed hater of running. My couch-to-5K program was going well until a minor ankle injury and then my running partner ruptured a tendon, so we decided that a brisk walk was the closest we were going to get and went to the race anyway. It was a lovely day for it and park we walked around was really nice; the pre-race Zumba was fun (to watch); and a good time was had by all, in spite of the fact that we took long enough that they disassembled the tent and packed up before we were quite finished. I'm not sure that I'll sign up for another event this year - really, I don't like running - but it was a great way to kick start some healthier habits and get into a walking routine. 

We're having tacos tonight (coincidentally, because I'm not really that organized) but I'd be remiss if I didn't share one of our favorite new recipes in honor of the holiday: Mexican Jambalaya. I'm not crazy about the name of this one - really, the only thing it has in common with actual jambalaya is the presence of sausage - but we haven't thought of anything better to call it. It's got the vibe of open-the-cans-and-call-it-Mexican-food cooking that I absolutely can't get behind, but really, I blame the name. It calls for actual chopped veg and actual spices and no more actual cans that plenty of other dishes we make, so I'm not sure why I'm being a snob about it. The end result is undeniably delicious. 

The recipe makes a ludicrous amount of food, which means that we actually end up with leftovers for lunch even when John is at the dinner table with us, and it's ready if not much more than half an hour. We've made some modifications to it based on what we can find at our local Aldi/GFS, as I'm not making a separate trip to find smoked Basque chorizo somewhere. I'm sure it's even better as written, but our substitute version has done just fine for us; it's become something of a regular in our kitchen. 

As with so many of the other recipes David finds online, I have no idea whatsoever where this came from. I'd be happy to attribute it to the original author if only I knew who they were. 

Mexican Jambalaya

4 1/2 oz Mexican chorizo 
12 oz smoked Basque chorizo, chopped
6 oz smoked Andouille sausage, chopped

OR 

1/2 package of the pre-cooked Black Forest sausage you buy at GFS that looks like kielbasa but isn't, chopped
2 cups chopped, cooked leftover chicken

Which way you go with the meat really depends on what your local grocery store stocks. By all means, find the sausages if you can and then pleeeeeease tell me how it turns out because I bet it's fantastic. 

1 yellow or white onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped 
2 cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes (regular diced if you can't find the fire-roasted)
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ancho chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp kosher salt 
2 cups chicken broth
1 roasted, peeled, and chopped Anaheim or jalapeno chile (or sub a can of diced roasted green chiles, if the fresh produce section of your store is lacking)
1 15-oz can pinto beans 

If you're using the Mexican chorizo, cook it in a large stock pot, crumbling it as you go, then add the onion. If you're using our cheater ingredients, start by cooking your onion in a little canola oil for about 3 minutes. 

Stir in the celery and bell pepper and cook another 5 minutes or so. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil, then simmer and cook 25 minutes. Serve over white rice.