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Jambalaya

DIRECTIONS

Heat the butter in a large, heavy sauté pan. Add the chicken and ham and sauté until lightly browned; remove. Add celery, garlic, onions, and jalapeño. Stir and "sweat" ingredients covered, over low heat, about five minutes. Add bay leaf, tomatoes, chicken broth, and rice. Stir up and taste for salt. Ham and broth are great variables in determining how much salt will be needed. Return the ham and chicken thighs to the pan, add thyme, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook over low heat 15 minutes. Insert a double thickness of paper towels between the pan and the lid, turn off heat, and let the jambalaya steam for another 10 minutes. [All this can be done ahead and the whole reheated, covered loosely with foil, in a 325 degree oven, thus it is a convenient dish for parties.]
Separately, prick the sausages a couple of times and broil them over very low heat - or a charcoal fire, if available - for about 15 minutes, turning frequently (Sausages, unfortunately, do not reheat well.)
Stick the bell pepper on a long fork, char its skin over an open flame, and put it into a paper bag for 10 minutes. When the skin can easily be rubbed off with a paper towel or blunt knife edge, slice the pepper in long strips and use it to garnish the jambalaya, after you have arranged the sausages over the rice. Sprinkle the jambalaya liberally with minced parsley. Pass a shaker of dried red pepper flakes at the table for the heavy-duty fire eaters.