This simple vegan jambalaya is a super tasty, satisfying and nutritious vegan recipe, and a delicious dinner dish made with beans instead of meat.
Jambalaya is a dish from Lousiana, which has its origins in the Spanish and French cuisines, especially in the Spanish dish paella and jambalaia, a French dish from Provence.
Classic recipe is not vegan and is made with some meat or seafood, veggies, and rice, but I've made a plant-based version using chickpeas and beans instead of an animal-based protein.
It's a super nutritious dish because it contains vegetables, protein (legumes), and a healthy source carbohydrates (rice), and also so tasty because of the spices I've used.
I used to sautée my veggies in water and then I added tahini along with the legumes, but I prefer to sautée my veggies in oil now and I also omit the tahini. Both versions are so good, so make the one you prefer!
How to make vegan jambalaya – Step by step
- Add the oil to a skillet or large pot and when it's hot add the veggies and cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes (photo 1).
- Add the crushed tomatoes and cook another 5 minutes (photo 2).
- Add the tamari or soy sauce and the spices and stir (photo 3).
- Then add the rice and the water or vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Cook over medium-high heat for 15 minutes or until the rice is cooked (photo 4).
- Add the chickpeas and beans, stir and cook 1-2 minutes more (photo 5).
- Serve the rice (photo 6) with some chopped fresh parsley on top (optional).
Pro tips
- Oil is optional, you can sautée the veggies in some water or vegetable stock, and then add 2 tablespoon of tahini if you want when you add the legumes (step 4).
- Use any veggies, spices or legumes you like.
- Feel free to use fresh tomatoes instead of canned tomatoes. If the rice is too dry, add more liquid (water or vegetable stock).
- Add salt instead of the tamari or soy sauce if you don't eat soy.
- The classic recipe is made with long grain rice, but I used what I had on hand. Use any type of rice you prefer.
Do you cook rice before adding to vegan jambalaya
No, I don't, but you could if you want or you could also use leftover rice. In that case, just omit the water or vegetable stock and add more oil or tahini if needed.
What is served with vegan jambalaya?
You could eat it by itself as it includes veggies, carbs, and protein, but here are some side dishes that pair very well with jambalaya:
Looking for more vegan rice recipes?
- Brown Rice Stir Fry with Vegetables
- Vegan Fried Rice
- Vegan Red Beans and Rice
- Vegan Mushroom Risotto
Did you make this vegan jambalaya recipe?
Please leave a comment below, share it or rate it. You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, and PINTEREST. I’d love to see what you cook!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Jambalaya
Ingredients
- 1-2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ onion, chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- ½ red bell pepper, chopped
- ½ green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
- 1 14-ounce can of crushed tomatoes
- 2 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne powder
- 1 cup uncooked rice, I used short grain white rice
- 3 cups water or vegetable stock
- 1 cup canned or cooked chickpeas
- 1 cup canned or cooked kidney beans
- Chopped fresh parsley for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Add the oil to a skillet or large pot and when it's hot add the veggies and cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.
- Add the crushed tomatoes and cook another 5 minutes.
- Add the tamari or soy sauce and the spices and stir. Then add the rice and the water or vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Cook over medium-high heat for 15 minutes or until the rice is cooked.
- Add the chickpeas and beans, stir and cook 1 to 2 minutes more.
- Serve with some chopped fresh parsley on top (optional).
- Keepleftovers in the fridge in a sealed container for 5-7 days.
Notes
- Oil is optional, you can sautée the veggies in some water or vegetable stock, and then add 2 tablespoon of tahini if you want when you add the legumes (step 4).
- Use any veggies, spices or legumes you like.
- Feel free to use fresh tomatoes instead of canned tomatoes. If the rice is too dry, add more liquid (water or vegetable stock).
- Add salt instead of the tamari or soy sauce if you don't eat soy.
- The classic recipe is made with long grain rice, but I used what I had on hand. Use any type of rice you prefer.
- Nutritional info has been calculate by using 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and water instead or vegetable stock.
Nutrition
Update Notes: This post was originally published in September of 2017, but was republished with new photos, step by step instructions and tips in January of 2020.
Camela says
Easy to understand instructions & it came out delicious! Thank you for posting this!
Iosune Robles says
Hi Camela! Thank you for your kind words 🙂
Katherine says
Delicious!!
Iosune Robles says
Thank you so much Katherine! Have a nice day 🙂
Mandy says
Anyone tried this using orzo pasta?
Jennifer says
Yum! So much better than the store bought mix I've used for years. I made as listed except added some vegan sausage and nutritional yeast. Plan to add this to my regular rotation. Thank you!
Iosune Robles says
Hi Jennifer! So glad you liked our vegan jambalaya 🙂 Have a nice day!
MadisonCook says
This was a great, inexpensive one-dish meal. The only thing we changed was to use one whole can of kidney beans and no garbanzos. Other than that, my 17 year old daughter followed it to the letter and it turned out wonderfully. We served Beyond Sausage on the side and regular andouille on the side for the meat eaters among us. Yum!
Iosune Robles says
Hi! So glad you all liked it 🙂 Have a nice day!
Lynsey A Hudson says
Such an easy recipe to follow. Thank you for all the ideas of how to modify it. My dad became vegan last year so I've been trying to find recipes that he enjoys as well as the rest of the family.
Iosune Robles says
Hi! Thanks for your kind words 🙂 So glad you all liked our recipes!
Sherell says
This tastes pretty good, and even better with some vegan chorizo I added to it. It would be much appreciated if you could clarify in the recipe whether we should be draining and rinsing the canned beans prior to adding them to the pot (I did rinse and drain, but wasn't positive if I needed to).
Iosune Robles says
Hi Sherell! So glad you liked it 🙂 Thanks for your suggestion! Have a nice day!
Ashley says
This was so delicious! Thanks for the recipe!
Iosune Robles says
So glad you liked it Ashley 🙂 Have a nice day!
Nancy says
Awesome!! Very filling! New comfort food. Hubby amazed! Serving with steamed cor. On the cob for his Father's day treat! Quick and easy! LOVE IT!!!
Iosune Robles says
Sounds so good Nancy! So glad you liked it 🙂 Have a nice day!
Moonlight says
I made the recipe last night and it was delicious. Definitely a keeper. I would make one adjustment to the instructions. Rice in my experience cannot be fully cooked in 15 minutes. As an experienced cook this didn't cause me a problem, though dinner was later than planned. I used brown rice. The package directions say to cook the rice for 45-55 minutes. And that was exactly how long it took to fully cook the rice. I wouldn't want an inexperienced cook to think they just can't make rice and miss out.
Iosune Robles says
Hi! So glad you liked it 🙂 Yes, you're right. Depending on what rice did you use it will take more time to be fully cooked or not. That's why we specified in our recipe: "Cook over medium-high heat for 15 minutes or until the rice is cooked."
Have a nice day!
Nicole says
I made this on Wednesday and at the end I added vegetarian chorizo sausage cut up in it... amazing. Your recipe is phenomenal! My husband and I love flavor and This didn’t lack it at all. Our taste buds were alive... Thank you so much for sharing. 😁
Iosune Robles says
Thank you so much for your kind words 🙂 I am so glad you liked it!
Kate says
Great recipe! I did it exactly as written and it's a fabulous flavor! I'm excited to have such a tasty alternative to the meat version. Thanks so much for sharing 😊
Iosune Robles says
Hi Kate 🙂 Thanks for your kind words! Have a nice day!
Natasha says
Delicious! Used the leftovers in so many different ways . Thank you!
Iosune Robles says
Hello Natasha 🙂 So glad you liked it! Thank you too!
Sherry says
I'm thinking of making this tomorrow for dinner. My family is really picky and mostly meat eaters unless it's covered with cheese. Do you think if added cheddar and mozzarella cheese to this it would taste good?
Iosune Robles says
Hello Sherry! We are vegans so I can't help you on this, sorry. Try to cover it with vegan cheese 🙂 I am sure that they will love it! Have a nice week!
Harilal's says
Thank you for an amazing vegan recipe. Harilal's is a famous Indian Vegetarian Restaurant and we would like to appreciate you for encouraging people to try more vegan dishes.
Iosune Robles says
Hello! Thanks for your words 🙂 Have a nice day!
Katie C says
I made this last night and it was delicious! 5 stars. I did substitute the kidney beans and chickpeas with tofu and vegan sausage, I most certainly will make again. Thank you
Iosune Robles says
Hi Katia, that sounds amazing 🙂 Have a nice day!
Patty Grasher says
This was super delicious. I did not have Chickpeas so just doubled the kidney beans. We also added a tablespoon of Cajun seasoning which blended in well with the other seasoning. Yummy! This is a MUST SAVE recipe.
Eileen Bedinghaus says
The only addition I made was some vegan chipotle sausage and frozen corn. It was amazing!
Iosune Robles says
Hi Eileen, sounds so good 🙂 Have a nice day!
Lily says
I made that last night and it was AMAZING! I replaced peppers with the fire roasted ones, I also added dry celery in the end. And skipped chickpeas, because I didn't have them and it's just so good.thank you for the recipe. Especially I love that you have videos for your recipes, which makes the process so easy!
Iosune Robles says
Hi Lily, so glad you liked it 🙂 Thanks for your words!
Jay says
Can i freeze it after?
Iosune Robles says
Hello Jay, I haven't try to freeze it but I think you could do it 🙂 Have a nice day!
Melanie says
My two teen kids and husband enjoyed this. Thanks for another great option for the whole family. I used one large can of bean medley (540ml / 19oz) and it came out delicious.
Iosune Robles says
Hi Melanie!! It is great to hear that!! Thank you so much! Have a nive day!!!
Alexis F says
Absolutely delicious! So much flavor and made with pantry staples. Can’t wait to make it again! Thank you for sharing 🙂 (ps I am absolutely a carnivore, but didn’t even notice the lack of meat)
Iosune Robles says
Hi Alex!!! We are glad you like it!! Have a nice day!
Neesha Roman says
Amazing. I added corn and white beans. However is my brown rice not cooked or overcooked. It seems to not get done. But the flavor in this recipe is great
Iosune Robles says
Hi Neesha!! We are glad you like it! hugs!
Karin says
Simply delicious! I made this for dinner, using short grain brown rice. I had to cook it about 50-60 minutes because of that, but the chewiness of the rice makes it so worth it. My two sons, who are not vegan, LOVED it! The flavors/spices are perfect.
Iosune says
Hi Karin! So glad you guys enjoyed it 🙂
Kavya says
Yes, i did make this recipe and it came out wonderful. Being an indian we never made such a unique combination. I jist loved it amd my family members too.
Iosune says
Hi Kavya! So glad you guys enjoyed it 🙂
Lisa Golden says
Amazing! My husband and I didn't miss the meat at all! Wonderful flavor!
Iosune says
Hi Lisa! I'm so happy to read that 🙂
Fay Price says
Fabulous, simple and quick! I even had all the ingredients. Thanks!
Iosune says
Hi Fay! Thanks a lot 🙂
Yvonne says
Excellent, thank you. Even my non vegan husband really enjoyed this 😊
Iosune says
Hi Yvonne! So glad you and your husband enjoyed it 🙂
Melissa says
So delicious and easy to make! Just dump it all in a slow cooker and magic happens. Even the non vegans loved it! Thank you or this recipe.
Iosune says
Hi Melissa! Thank YOU for your comment 🙂
ohallahan says
Nice blog and recipes! looks good 🙂
Iosune says
Hi Ohallahan! Thanks a lot 🙂
Michelle says
Loved this recipe! Made with water for sauteing. Will make again, but will probably use pinto beans in place of chickpeas. Thank you for the recipe!
Iosune says
Hi Michlle! Thank YOU so much 🙂
Justice says
Amazing recipe, thanks!
Iosune says
Hi Justice! Thank you so much 🙂
Racheal says
Amazing! You have to continuously stir it which was so annoying because I like to multitask but gosh was it worth it lol! I got a super big can of crushed tomatoes and added more at the end because I like a really tomato-ey Jambalaya. Thank you!
Iosune says
Hi Racheal! Thank YOU 🙂 I'm glad you liked it!
Charles Thomas says
Made this delicious recipe last night. Filled the house with delicious aromas and GREAT MOTHER, it was so delicious. Will definitely make this a regular part of my meal plan.
Iosune says
Hi Charles! So glad you liked it so much 🙂
Jax says
I made this today. Omg it's so tasty. I had some for lunch then some in a wrap for my evening meal. . I will be making this again 😊. Does anyone know if you can freeze this ?
Iosune says
Hi Jax! So glad you liked it 🙂 Yes, it freezes well!
Dimple Nagori says
How many fresh tomatoes to use instead of crushed can tomatoes? Thank you
Iosune says
Hi Dimple! I would use the same amount. Just add more stock or water if needed 🙂
JB says
This is one of my favorites. I've made it so many times and it always turns out great. I make it with cooked wild rice. So, in step three I add the cooked wild rice with just enough vegetable stock so that it's not soupy, then cook for 5 minutes to mingle the flavors into the rice. Tahini used to be included as optional within the body of the recipe but was removed and placed in the recipe notes. I'm curious as to why as I think it tastes delicious with it included.
Iosune says
Hi JB! Thanks a lot 🙂 Most of our readers use oil, that's why I changed the recipe box, but tahini is also a great choice!
Phil Porter says
My whole family loved this recipe. I followed it pretty much exactly, and it turned out great. Very easy to make.
Iosune says
Hi Phil! So glad your whole family enjoyed it 🙂
Hope says
Hello,
looks amazing! Any tips if this could be done in InstantPot and how long to cook?
Iosune says
Hi Hope! I've never tried it myself, so I can't help you, sorry!
Jo says
Oh man, so good! I noticed a comment about the amount of liquid so I only used two thirds of the broth and I think next time I'd cut it back even more, but it was excellent regardless. Definitely double the recipe so you can use whole peppers and cans of beans -- we got so many meals out of this!
Iosune says
Hi Jo! I'm so glad you liked it 🙂
Jalyn Burns says
Hi! I just wanted to say thank you for this recipe. My culinary program at Goochland High School entered this recipe for a NASA contest and we are on to the next round. We did adjust it a little, but it was still amazing! Thank you again.
Iosune says
Hi Jalyn! So glad you liked it, but if you use our recipes, it would be great if you could share a link to our blog 🙂
Julie Freudenthal says
Whoa! It was delicious! This is going to be one of my new staples without a doubt. I didn’t make any major changes - maybe more spices because I didn’t bother measuring:)
Iosune says
Hi Julie! Thank you so much 🙂 So glad to hear that!
Paige says
I love this recipe so much. Very easy to make! I make this for a meal prep every week. I add celery, corn, and jalapeño to make it my own !
Iosune says
Hi Paige! I'm so glad you love it 🙂 Sounds amazing!
Theo says
This is pretty good! I followed the recipe except for adding some celery, and sauteeing the vegetables in the first step. I agree with Sierra that even though the chick peas are cooked, they still tasted conspicuously dry (i rinsed a tin of chickpeas for the dish, and added them for the last 3 mins of cooking). This was also much less spicy than most jambalaya I'm familiar with (especially lacking pockets of spice through chorizo), but my gut can't cope with much heat so I'm happy with this recipe. I also used long grain rice, and the cooking time was just right. Overall it tastes good and I'm happy to have a huge batch of it to eat as leftovers all week 🙂 Worth trying out and experimenting with, I'm going to add chickpeas in with the rice so that they aren't as dry in the end next time, and tweak the herbs and spices (more onion and less oregano would suit my taste better in the next batch).
Iosune says
Hi Theo! Did you use canned chickpeas? They're not dry, even if you don't cook them. So glad you liked the recipe 🙂
Taffy says
I also used coconut aminos as a soy sauce
Iosune says
Great! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Cheyenne says
Have you tried this with brown rice? Do you think it would be any good?
Taffy says
I used wild rice and fresh tomato so good thanks for the recipe.
Iosune says
Hi Taffy! Sounds so good 🙂 You're so welcome!
Patricia Goldberg says
Sounds good will try it
Iosune says
Hi Patricia! Hope you enjoy it 😉
Brian says
Possible to freeze for a later date? How long do you believe this could keep frozen?
Iosune says
Hi Brian! I haven't frozen myself, but I think it should work. I would freeze it for up to a month 🙂
Sierra G says
It was okay. I followed the instructions and the rice, beans and chickpeas were not cooked. Had to add extra cumin, cayenne pepper and soy sauce. Added black pepper too.. cooked it longer and it was pretty dang good.
Iosune says
Hi Sierra! Did you use canned beans and chickpeas? They're already cooked and the time may vary depending on the type of rice you're using.
Eric Gondrella says
I am told by doctors I cannot eat rice because of carbs. What can I use instead of rice.
Iosune says
Hi Eric! You could use cauliflower rice: https://simpleveganblog.com/how-to-make-cauliflower-rice/ 🙂