Cajun Rice Dressing

Rice dressing is a staple of south Louisiana holiday meals. So growing up as the son of two south Louisiana natives, it was always a given that we had it at Thanksgiving and Christmas meals. When I had my first Thanksgiving potluck with my wife's extended family, I knew I had to make it. I mean, nobody else in the Midwest was going to bring it, and it's just not Thanksgiving without this dish. Unsurprisingly (to me, at least), it was a massive hit and quickly became the favorite of a bunch of her cousins. Since then, I've shared it with countless friends and everyone has said the same thing: I NEED THAT RECIPE! Well my friend, here it is, just for you:

Ingredients

This recipe makes about 6 servings. Adjust accordingly.

Rice

• 1 cup long grain white rice (be sure to rinse it before cooking!)
• 2 cups of water
• 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon of salt

Dressing

• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 cup of chopped onions (about 1 medium onion)
• 1 cup of chopped celery (about 3-4 stalks)
• 1/2 cup of chopped bell pepper (about 1 pepper)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 pound of ground beef
• 1/2 pound of ground pork
• 1/2 pound of chicken giblets, chopped (I always sub this for an additional half pound of ground beef)
• 2 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp black pepper
• 3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 cup of chicken broth

Instructions

Cook the rice

1. Put all ingredients into a saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. Lower heat to medium and cook until rice and water are at the same level.
3. Cover, lower heat to low, and cook for 20 minutes.
4. Remove from heat (keep covered), and let stand 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Super useful trick: I was taught this trick for measuring how much water to use to cook rice. Put the rice into the pot and add enough water to cover the rice by the depth of one finger joint of your index finger. This rule applies no matter how much rice you are cooking. Just adjust butter and salt accordingly if increasing amount of rice. I have never had a bad batch of rice using this method, and to this day I still never measure the water except by this method.

Rice dressing

1. Make the roux: brown the flour in oil until it is a deep red-brown, stirring constantly to prevent burning. If you have never made a roux before, turn the heat to medium-low, add in the flour and oil, and stir constantly. I mean constantly. Otherwise it WILL burn.
2. Add onion, celery, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook until vegetables are tender.
3. Stir in the beef, pork, giblets, and seasonings. Continue cooking until the meat loses its color.
4. Blend in the chicken broth. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes.
5. Stir in the rice. Cook 5 more minutes. Mixure should be moist.

Serve and enjoy your new favorite side dish! I hope you love it as much as I do. ❤️