One-pot Vegan Jambalaya Recipe ready in 30 minutes
An easy vegan jambalaya recipe ready in 30 minutes in one bowl. A delicious southern-style comforting family dinner with sticky tomato rice cooked with a medley of soft beans, vegan sausages, and Cajun flavors.
Is jambalaya vegan?
No, an authentic jambalaya recipe is made with two or three kinds of meat, and sometimes it also contains shrimp. However, it’s very easy to reproduce the flavor, texture, and protein properties of this classic recipe in a vegan-friendly way using beans and vegan sausages.
What’s a vegan jambalaya?
A vegan jambalaya recipe is a flavorsome tomato rice dish slowly cooked with beans, vegetables, and Cajun spices. It’s has a porridge-like texture similar to risotto recipes. The rice is creamy and packed with vegetables and beans.
How to make vegan jambalaya?
The key to making a flavorsome vegan jambalaya recipe is to use many spices. The ingredients you need to make this simple recipe are:
- Long grain rice – you can use brown rice, white basmati rice, quinoa.
- Tomato paste
- Canned diced tomatoes
- Vegetable stock
- Red kidney beans
- Chickpeas
- Bell pepper – a combination of red and green adds a good balance of flavors and colors.
- Celery
- Garlic
- Onion
- Olive oil
- Paprika
- Oregano
- Basil
- Cajun seasoning
- Vegan sausage – optional, but it adds a boost of flavors, protein, and texture that mimic the authentic jambalaya recipe.
It looks like many ingredients, but don’t be overwhelmed by it. The recipe is pretty simple and straightforward. This vegan jambalaya recipe is a one-pot recipe ready in 30 minutes.
Cooking the vegetables
First, heat olive oil in a large cast-iron casserole or large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, bell peppers, salt, and pepper.
Reduce heat and cook the vegetables for 3 minutes until tender. Feel free to add jalapeno slices if you love your dish spicy.
Stir in rice and spice
Then, add tomato paste, garlic, dried oregano, dried basil, salt, paprika, Cajun seasonings. Stir fry the rice and tomato paste into the cooked vegetable for 1 minute.
Add liquid ingredients
Now, add crushed canned tomatoes, vegetable broth.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cover the casserole. Cook for 15 minutes for medium heat until the rice soaked all the liquid.
You know it’s cooked when the rice is tender. Don’t forget to open the casserole and stir every 2-3 minutes to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the casserole.
Cook vegan sausage
Meanwhile, cook the vegan sausage in a BBQ or non-stick pan on all sides. Then, slice into thick chunks.
Add proteins
Now that the rice is cooked through and thick, stir in chickpeas and kidney beans, plus the optional vegan sausage chunks.
Cook for another 3-4 minutes until all the ingredients are warm and fragrant.
For a different perspective on this recipe, watch my story about making the vegan Jambalaya with full instructions!
How to serve jambalaya
Serve this vegan jambalaya recipe hot with some finely chopped parsley, slices of jalapeno, or a drizzle of hot sauce.
Recipe variations
This vegan jambalaya recipe is a comforting gluten-free dinner full of plant-based proteins.
- Rice option – you can add the rice you like to this recipe. For example, you can increase fiber and decrease net carbs per serving by using long-grain brown rice. It will take a little bit longer to cook – around 20-22 minutes.
- Vegan sausage – there is a variety of vegan sausage available on the market, from tofu Italian sausage often flavored with Italian herbs like rosemary to pea-based sausages. However, tofu sausages tend to crumble into this dish, and I prefer to use Beyond Meat sausages or the Alternative Meat Co. sausages. These two options taste very similar to chorizo and add a similar meaty texture and spicy flavor as you used to eat in an authentic jambalaya. They also hold shape very well even if you rewarm the dish.
- Beans – play with the sort of beans, swap kidney beans by cannellini beans, or chickpeas by peas! All these options are very tasty and flavorsome.
- Spices – this recipe uses Cajun seasoning, but for a creole version, swap for creole seasoning.
How to store jambalaya?
This dish stores for up to 4 days in an airtight container in the fridge. You can rewarm the dish in the microwave or a non-stick saucepan.
The jambalaya freezes very well too. Thaw in the fridge the day before serving.
More vegan meal recipes
If you’ve enjoyed this vegan meal recipe, you’ll love these:
Have you made this vegan jambalaya recipe? Share a comment or review below. I love to hear your feedback on my recipes.
Carine
Vegan Jambalaya Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 cup Onion - diced
- 2 ribs Celery - diced
- 1 Green Bell Pepper - cored, diced
- 1 Red Bell Pepper - cored, diced
- 1-2 Jalapeno Pepper - seeded, finely chopped, add only if you love your dish very spicy!
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Pepper
- 6 cloves Garlic - minced
- 1 cup Long Grain Rice
- 2 tablespoons Tomato Paste
- ¼ teaspoon Sweet Paprika
- 1 teaspoon Oregano
- 1 teaspoon Dried Basil
- 3 teaspoons Cajun Seasoning
- 1 can Diced Tomatoes - (14.5oz)
- 2 cups Vegetable Broth
- 1 can Chickpeas - drained, rinsed
- 1 can Kidney Beans - drained, rinsed
Optional
- 6 oz Beyond Sausage - grilled, sliced
- 1 tablespoon Hot Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Parsley - chopped
- 2 Green Onions - thinly sliced
Instructions
- In a large cast-iron casserole, heat olive oil over medium heat.
- Add onions, celery, bell peppers, and jalapeno slices if you like your dish on the spicy side. Season with salt and pepper.
- Cook for 4 minutes, or until just tender.
- Stir in garlic, rice, tomato paste, sweet paprika, oregano, basil, Cajun seasoning, and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in diced canned tomatoes and vegetable broth.
- Cover and cook for 15 minutes over medium heat until rice is cooked.
- Stir in chickpeas and red kidney beans, cover, and cook again for 5-9 minutes on low-medium heat.
- Meanwhile, warm a skillet over medium heat with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Fry the beyond sausage for 5-7 minutes on all sides. Remove from heat and slice.
- Stir in the sausage slices into the jambalaya casserole.
- Serve with sliced green onions, a drizzle of hot sauce, and finely chopped parsley.
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Vegan jambalaya looks delicious. Can’t wait to try it out.