This spin on the classic Cajun/Creole Dirty Rice is made with bacon and smoked sausage instead of the traditional chicken liver. Easy, hearty and perfect as a weeknight meal or as a side dish for a special occasion, like Thanksgiving!

This post is sponsored by Jennie-O.

Our baby girl is 1 month old! ???

I can’t believe how time flies and, while I’m excited to see her achieve her milestones and start interacting with the world, I am also sad that soon that newborn phase will be over. I’ll probably wake up one day and realize I have a teenager, wondering how the heck did that happen…

So even though I’m beyond exhausted and going on pretty much no sleep, I try to remind myself that I need to enjoy these days to the fullest!

This week I finally got back in the kitchen and it felt great!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m loving having my mom here and all the homemade meals. If it wouldn’t be for her, Tim and I would be surviving on fast food and frozen meals!

So to show her my appreciation, I braved through the exhaustion and made a quick and easy (but oh so flavorful) dirty rice for dinner.

It was my first time playing with this dish and I’m pretty proud of the results. It is hearty, rich and perfect for comfort food weather, like fall and winter.

If you’re a purist and likes authentic recipes, this dirty rice version is not for you, because you couldn’t pay me enough to eat chicken liver. Or any liver! Besides, who doesn’t love bacon and smoked sausage?

And the answer is: my mom. She doesn’t eat pork and beef, so my plans were ruined.

Except… she eats turkey. And Jennie-O makes a delicious Hardwood Smoked Turkey Sausage and that’s what I used!

Not only it has 65% less fat than pork/beef sausages, but it comes fully cooked so prep time is minimal and you can just slice it and add to the recipe. It tasted even better than what I envisioned.

It seriously worked like a charm! Except for the bacon… I had to make her a separate version without the bacon.

Oh well, more bacon for me! ?

I realize that without the chicken liver, this dirty rice dish doesn’t look dirty at all. Oops! On the contrary, it looks beautiful, colorful and vibrant. Don’t you wanna just dig in?

Dirty or not so dirty, what matters is that is tastes amazing! I highly recommend you give it a try. It makes a great meal for those busy nights when you don’t have the energy to cook anything elaborated. And, as a bonus, you get to use leftover cooked rice, if you have some!

This also makes a great stuffing for your Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey. It is also gluten free and you can omit the cajun seasoning, if a New Orleans extravaganza isn’t what you were planning! ???

Enjoy!

Continue to Content

Dirty Rice with Smoked Sausage and Bacon

Yield: 4 to 6

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Print

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound bacon, chopped
• 1 pound smoked turkey sausage, sliced
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 yellow or green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 4 cups cooked white rice
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning (optional)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

In a large skillet, over medium heat, cook the bacon until almost golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the sliced sausage and cook until browned, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove bacon and sausage and reserve.

Add the onion, celery, bell pepper and garlic to the fat in the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4-5 minutes.

Add back the reserved sausage/bacon and fold in the cooked rice. Season with salt and pepper.

Add the chicken broth and cajun seasoning (if using). Cook until the broth has reduced a little. Taste for seasoning and add some more salt or pepper if necessary.

Turn off the heat and add the parsley. Toss once more to combine and serve hot.