Jambalaya is the one-pot rice dish associated with the annual festival in Gonzales, Louisiana.
Jambalaya combines rice with meat, seafood, vegetables, stock, and seasonings in a single pot. Gonzales is known as the “Jambalaya Capital of the World,” and its annual Jambalaya Festival celebrates the dish and the city’s culinary identity. In 1968, Louisiana Governor John J. McKeithen gave Gonzales that title.
The dish has two broad Louisiana styles. Cajun or Acadiana jambalaya generally contains no tomatoes; meat is browned first, and the browned bits left on the pot help color the rice. Creole or New Orleans-style jambalaya usually includes tomatoes and is often called red jambalaya in Acadiana.
Jambalaya is sometimes compared with paella because both are seasoned rice dishes cooked with other ingredients, but they are not the same dish. Jambalaya also differs from red beans and rice, which is a separate preparation in which beans are served with rice rather than cooked as one rice-centered casserole.