The browned bits called sucs give Cajun jambalaya much of its brown color.
As meat cooks in a cast-iron pot, bits stick to the bottom and brown intensely. These concentrated pieces, along with the flavorful fat and juices around them, are incorporated when the vegetables, stock, seasonings, and rice are added. They help create the savory depth and characteristic color of Cajun, or “brown,” jambalaya.
The process is related to the broader cooking principle of fond: browned residue left on a pan that contributes flavor when loosened or deglazed. In the terminology used for Cajun jambalaya, however, the specific word supplied by the recipe tradition is sucs.
Cajun jambalaya is usually made without tomatoes, unlike Creole or New Orleans-style red jambalaya. That distinction matters because the brown color in Cajun jambalaya comes chiefly from browned meat and the caramelization of ingredients, not tomato sauce.