Serious Eats

This recipe was a big home run. The whole thing took under two hours, with roughly one hour of active time. I found it an enjoyable recipe to make, with accurate timing and descriptions in the recipe steps. The only deviation I took was using more meat than called for, and this was mostly out of convenience. We had a 1lb bag of shrimp and a 13.5 oz andouille sausage, and used all of both. And our chicken thighs came out to weighing 1.5 lbs rather than 1.25 lbs. One other thing I did which the recipe does not mention was rinsing the rice. Not sure if this was important, but I take after my father when it comes to de-starching rice.

The end result was delightful. So flavorful, with all the different proteins and seasoning. The spice level was just right, in the sense that it had a kick, but most anyone could eat this comfortably. If you want it to be spicy, start by increasing the cayenne to 1/2 tsp. I didn't miss the heat, though, so I'll stick with the instructed 1/4 tsp. Also regarding seasoning, dried thyme is both easier and, in my opinion, more appropriate than fresh in this context. I find that creole dishes often use dried herbs generously. So basically, I can't think of anything I'd do differently from what the recipe says. This is exactly what I want out of a cajun style dish. Well done, Daniel Gritzer.