Brilliant Blackened Cajun Salmon Jambalaya

Jambalaya is one of those dishes that truly warms your soul. The gentle heat of the spicy sausage and hot sauce along with the creaminess of the rice, almost like a risotto, and the sweet juiciness of the prawns combine to make a meal that ticks all the flavour boxes. In this version, I also place a blackened Cajun salmon fillet on top which really adds another dimension and also makes the meal a bit more substantial. The spices in the rub are all kitchen cupboard stables and yet when they're all mixed together the result is something really quite special.

Brilliant Blackened Cajun Salmon Jambalaya
Serves 4 

4 x 150g salmon fillets 
16 king prawns, deveined
1 onion, finely diced 
1 green pepper, diced 
2 stalks celery, chopped 
200g spiced sausage (chorizo-style or ideally Andouille), chopped
150g long grain rice 
400ml chicken stock 
1 tbsp hot sauce 
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce 
3 bay leaves 
For the spice rub:
1 tbsp smoked paprika 
1 tsp salt 
1 tbsp garlic powder 
1½ tbsp white pepper 
1½ tbsp onion powder 
1½ tbsp cayenne 
1½ tbsp dried oregano 
1½ tbsp dried thyme 
To serve:
sour cream 
hot sauce

Mix the spices together, then toss the salmon in the spice rub. Add a tiny amount of oil to a frying pan and fry the salmon fillets for 4 minutes on each side, charring the spices. 

In a separate pan, gently fry the onion, pepper and celery for 3-4 minutes. Add the chorizo and continue to fry for 2 minutes. Add the rice, stock, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaves. Bring to the boil, then cook for 15 minutes until the rice is soft. 

Add the king prawns and continue to cook until the prawns are cooked through. 

Serve the jambalaya with the salmon on top. Add extra hot sauce for more spice and sour cream to cool.