Tin Foil Jambalaya

Tin Foil Jambalaya combines Cajun andouille sausage, veggies, uncooked rice, and a delicious spice mixture. Mix it all together on some aluminum foil and throw it on the grill or in the oven. Easy prep, loads of flavor!

Try some other foil favorites like these Baked Potato Foil Packs, Hobo Foil Packets, or this tin foil Pesto and Sausage meal.

Tin Foil Jambalaya

Jambalaya is a favorite of mine, but first, let me start with this disclaimer: I am making NO claims to authenticity with this recipe! I mean, for starters it’s made in tin foil, ha! 

This isn’t meant to be an authentic, spend-all-day-on-it kind of dinner. So why call it jambalaya? It’s inspired by the flavors and typical ingredients you’ll find in an authentic jambalaya (similar to this One-Pan Jambalaya!)

The whole concept behind this recipe is to create a super-simple meal, limit the clean-up (like a lot), and still have a tasty, hearty dinner. And Tin Foil Jambalaya delivers on all counts. You will not believe how easy this is to make and there is so much flavor!

One final disclaimer before we continue on: This is spicy! There are certainly ways to decrease the spice, but like most jambalayas, you’ll get a good hit of spice from this recipe. 

Scaling down (or up) the spice levels

When scaling down the spice, note that there will be some loss of flavor. When removing or reducing spicy seasonings, you may want to increase other spices such as salt, pepper, and the dried herbs.

To make Tin Foil Jambalaya packets milder, reduce the cayenne pepper (try 1/4 teaspoon or omit it entirely), don’t add a jalapeño, and reduce the Cajun seasoning to 1/2 teaspoon.

To make these jambalaya packets spicier, add the optional jalapeño pepper and increase the Cajun seasoning to taste.

Uncooked rice…are you sure it will cook in time?

Yes! The whole point of Tin Foil Jambalaya is minimal prep and a quick dinner! I promise the rice cooks to a nice tender (never mushy) consistency.

In order for this to work, we do need Minute® (instant) rice. These foil packs do not work with regular white rice or any other variety of rice; it must be instant.

While you’re prepping the rest of the ingredients for these foil packs, soak the instant rice in chicken broth or stock–this softens it and infuses it with loads of flavor. I highly recommend Swanson’s® chicken stock (not sponsored) which I’ve found to have the most robust flavor for a store-bought stock.

Other Tin Foil Jambalaya Ingredients

Beyond the rice, here are a few other ingredient notes:

• Sausage. I use a Cajun-style andouille smoked sausage which has a great complementary flavor to the seasonings in these packets. Additionally, since it’s smoked, you don’t need to worry about cooking it to a certain temperature before serving.
• Fire-roasted diced tomatoes. This type of tomato is charred over a flame before being crushed and canned. Contact with the flame brings out the tomato’s sweetness and gives a distinct, smoky flavor. You get more flavor without any extra work.
• Zucchini. If you don’t love zucchini or they aren’t in season, feel free to use a different veggie in its place. You could also dice up an extra green bell pepper.

Tin Foil Jambalaya Tips

• Fully seal the foil packets, but leave room for steam to circulate.
• Generously spray the foil with a nonstick coating to keep the rice from sticking.
• Season to taste; after pulling the jambalaya packets from the oven or grill, let them cool for a few minutes and then taste for seasoning — the packets might need a pinch more of salt and/or pepper to make the flavors come alive.
• Dice aromatics evenly. The more evenly (and small) the onion, pepper, and celery are cut, the more evenly they’ll cook and incorporate into the final dish.

Tin Foil Jambalaya Alternative Cooking Methods

The actual heat on stovetops, ovens, grills, and campfires varies greatly, but I have tested this recipe using all four methods and am sharing the timing I found to be perfect. Time can also vary depending on the actual size of veggies, so my best advice would be to check just one packet at a time. Remember, every time you open a packet to check, it releases all the steam and will take an extra couple of minutes to recover the heat, in comparison to the other packets cooking.

• Stovetop (no foil): Place the entire mixture into a large Dutch oven (or half of the mixture into a large skillet) over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally until the veggies are crisp-tender (about 12-15 minutes), adding in additional olive oil as needed. Lower the heat if anything is burning or browning too much. 
• Oven (foil packs): Divide the mixture evenly onto four sheets of heavy-duty foil and wrap them so the foil is completely sealed. Place the foil-wrapped packets on a sheet pan and bake for 30-40 minutes. The time really depends on your preference — at 30-35 minutes everything should be crisp-tender and cooked through. For very soft veggies, leave them in 38-40 minutes. 
• Grill (foil packs): Divide the mixture evenly onto four sheets of heavy-duty foil and wrap them so the foil is completely sealed. Place on a preheated grill (medium-high heat; ~450 degrees) and grill for 20-25 minutes. Flip once halfway through the grilling process. 
• Campfire (in foil packs): Divide the mixture evenly onto four sheets of heavy-duty foil and wrap them so the foil is completely sealed. Cook foil packs in the hot coals of a campfire until the veggies are tender, around 20-40 minutes, flipping every 5 minutes, depending on the heat of the coals. We found these cooked in about 20 minutes with hot coals. 

More easy grilling recipes

• Grilled Flank Steak with a simple chimichurri herb sauce
• Our favorite Grilled Fajita Chicken with peppers and onions
• Grilled Pineapple with vanilla bean ice cream and a graham cracker crumble
• Grilled Chicken with Avocado Salsa and grilled corn
• Foil Pack Garlic Butter Sausage & Veggies with an incredible seasoning blend

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5 from 6 votes

Tin Foil Jambalaya

By Chelsea Lords

Tin Foil Jambalaya packs Cajun andouille sausage, veggies, rice, and bold spices into an easy, flavorful meal. Just mix, wrap in foil, and grill or bake!

Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Equipment

• Heavy-duty aluminum foil

Ingredients 

USMetric

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 cup Instant Minute Rice
• ▢ 1 cup chicken stock or broth; water works in a pinch

Seasonings

• ▢ 5 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper see note 1
• ▢ 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• ▢ Salt and pepper
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon dried sage optional
• ▢ 1 diced jalapeño optional

Veggies and Meat

• ▢ 1/2 cup thinly sliced celery 2 stalks
• ▢ 1/2 cup yellow onion 1/2 large onion
• ▢ 1 1 cup small green pepper
• ▢ 1-1/4 cup zucchini 1 small zucchini, optional
• ▢ 1 (13-ounce) package andouille sausage I use this cajun style andouille smoked sausage
• ▢ 1 (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes drained
• ▢ 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• ▢ Fresh parsley optional, to garnish

Instructions 

• In a small bowl, mix together uncooked instant rice and chicken stock and let stand about 10 minutes. You do not need to pre-cook the rice. Don’t drain either.
• Preheat oven or grill to 400°F. Tear off four sheets of heavy-duty foil (about 2 feet long each) and generously spray with cooking spray.
• Very thinly slice the celery, finely chop onion, dice pepper, and coin zucchini into thick (3/4-inch) coins (if using). Slice sausage into 1/2-inch-thick coins. Drain diced tomatoes.
• Add celery, onion, pepper, zucchini, and sausage to a very large bowl. Add tomato paste and drained diced tomatoes. Add all seasonings (see note 1), as well as salt and pepper to taste (I add a heaping 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper). If you’d like, add diced jalapeño for additional heat. Gently stir until all ingredients are well combined. Add in soaked rice along with any liquid. Gently stir until ingredients are incorporated.
• Divide the mixture evenly among the 4 prepared sheets of foil. (This comes out to a heaping 1 and 1/2 cups (330g) per packet.) Seal the foil packs tightly so no air escapes, but there is still room for steam to circulate (see note 2). To seal the foil packet, bring the short sides together in the middle and gently fold down to completely seal. Then, roll up the ends. 
• Place in oven (right on the oven racks) and bake 30–40 minutes (I like them best at 35 minutes) or on the grill for 25–30 minutes, until rice is cooked through and veggies are tender. (Test only 1 packet at a time; every time the packets are opened, steam is released, so it will take longer to cook.) When grilling, flip packets halfway through cook time.
• Carefully open the foil pack, expecting steam to be released. If desired, top with fresh parsley. Let slightly cool, taste, and add additional seasoning as needed. Enjoy hot.

Video

Recipe Notes

Note 1: These foil packs are spicy! To make them milder: reduce the cayenne pepper (try 1/4 teaspoon or omit entirely), don’t add a jalapeño, and reduce the Cajun seasoning (to 1/2 teaspoon). To make these tin foil jambalaya packets spicier: add the optional jalapeño pepper and increase the Cajun seasoning to taste.

Note 2: Do not double wrap the foil. Use only one sheet of foil per pack, or the cooking time will be off. However, If you don’t have heavy-duty foil, you will need 2 sheets of regular foil. Add a few minutes to cooking time, and check for doneness.

Storage: Store leftovers wrapped in foil or in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 749kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 46g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 79mg | Sodium: 1007mg | Potassium: 583mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 666IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 61mg | Iron: 6mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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