This is intended to be a very quick, easy way to cook up some good Cajun food.

1 box Zatarain’s Dirty Rice
1 lb uncooked shrimp
3 Bell Peppers (difference colors are nice)
1 Large Onion
~2 stalks Celery
~6 cloves Garlic
1 package (8oz) Sliced White Mushrooms
Cajun spice (dry spice mixture)
Hot Sauce (I prefer Frank’s Red Hot)
Hickory BBQ Sauce (something with a nice sweet, smokey flavor)
Oil (sesame seed, canola, or something similar)

Start the rice.*  I like to cook it in a rice cooker (assume about 2 cups of rice for the water measurement).  Otherwise, just follow the instructions on the box.

While the rice starts, prep the veggies.  About 1/2 way through, start heating the oil in a nice, large pan on high heat. Dice the onion and the celery.  I do the onion first, then dice celery until I get to a volume of about 75% of my onion.  Its a rough measurement, but it works.  Now, chop the garlic fine.  It’s going to look like a lot of garlic.  This is cajun, you want a lot of garlic.  Slice the bell peppers into med-thin strips.  Wash (and slice if you bought whole) the mushrooms.

Your oil should be up to temp by now (I toss one sacrificial onion into the pan to see if the oil sizzles).  Toss in the shrimp and give them a good coating of your cajun spice mixture.  You want each side to turn pink.  This will happen quick!  Keep an eye on them and flip them over on each side to cook them to pink.  Once they are ready, pull them out of the pan, put them in a bowl with a lid (Or anything else to keep them warm.  I like to put the bowl, covered by a small plate, in the microwave at this point.  It helps keep warm a little and keeps it out of the way but within easy reach).

Toss in your onions, and celery.  Salt this a little and give it just a couple of minutes to start to sweat.  Now toss in the rest of your veggies.  I let this go for a couple of minutes then toss a lid on it to keep some steam in and really get the mushrooms and peppers going.  Once all of the veggies start coming together, give them a little more of the cajun spice, then toss in the shrimp, mix it all together, lower the heat a little (maybe med-high) and toss the lid back on.  Let all of those flavors come together.

By now, your rice should be done.  Dump your rice into a large mixing bowl (big enough to hold the entire dish).  Add as little or as much of your hot sauce and your BBQ sauce as you like.  I kind of coat the entire top surface of the rice with the hot sauce, then do about 50% with the BBQ, mix it all together, have a tastes and do it again until I get it where I want it.  Don’t be shy with the BBQ.  This is the secret ingredient.  Without the andouille sausage, you’re going to cheat and use the BBQ sauce to give the dish a nice smokey flavor.  If the rice mixture seems too sweet, add some more hot sauce.  Too hot, add some more BBQ.  Can’t taste anything, stop being a wuss and really dump your sauces in there.

Once you get the rice to where you like it, toss in your shrimp and veggies and mix it all together.  You might need to hit it with some more of your cajun spice, or you can just let people spice their own at the table.

Warn anyone that is about to eat this that the shrimp need to be peeled.  Get some napkins then get your fingers dirty.

* A word on the rice.  The dirty simple way to make this is to use a pre-mixed box of cajun rice.  If that thought makes you cringe, you can do your own dirty rice.  But that’s extra work that I didn’t want for a quick recipe.