Alternative names | "Jumbled", "Mixed up" |
---|---|
Type | Rice |
Place of origin | United States |
Region or state | Louisiana |
Main ingredients | Meats, vegetables, stock, rice, seasoning |
Jambalaya (/ˌdʒæmbəˈlaɪə/ JAM-bə-LY-ə, /ˌdʒʌm-/ JUM-) is a savory rice dish that developed in the U.S. state of Louisiana fusing together African, Spanish, and French influences, consisting mainly of meat or seafood (or both),[1] and vegetables mixed with rice and spices. West Africans and Spanish people each had versions of jambalaya in their respective countries. Historian Ibraham Seck states Senegalese people were making jambalaya. The French introduced tomato to West Africans and they incorporated the crop into their one-pot rice dishes that created jambalaya and enhanced jollof rice. Spanish people made paella which is also a one-pot rice dish cooked with meats and vegetables. These styles of cuisines blended in Louisiana and resulted in cultural and regional variations of the dish.