This cajun dirty rice recipe is not only a favorite family side dish at Thanksgiving, it’s perfect year-round!
Hi there, friends! I’m back today with my friends from No Place Like Home to share some Thanksgiving inspiration with you. We are sharing all things Thanksgiving, and I’d love for you to check out their links at the bottom of this post. They never fail to come up with some very impressive ideas for your home!
I am originally from New Orleans, and I love anything cajun and creole. One dish that I remember at every single family get-together at either Thanksgiving or Christmas is dirty rice. I can’t remember a family holiday meal without it, and even now that I haven’t lived in New Orleans for quite some time, dirty rice is still a part of my holiday meals. If you’ve never heard of dirty rice, it traditionally is rice mixed with chicken livers, sausage, and cajun seasonings. My family, however, does not use chicken livers and replaces it with ground beef. The rice has a little heat, so if you like things a tad on the spicy side, this is the side dish for you. It is the perfect compliment to your cajun fried turkey!
This is not too complicated of a recipe, and one of the best things about it is that you can make it a day ahead of time. It reheats perfectly in the microwave which frees up precious stove space on the big day. It’s also a great dish to take along with you if you are not the one hosting your holiday meal.
Once you’ve confirmed your email address, you will receive our weekly newsletter full of our latest posts, as well as content that is exclusive for A Home To Grow Old In subscribers. Plus, you’ll have access to our Resource Library that is full of FREE printables and SVG cut files.

Cajun Dirty Rice
This cajun dirty rice recipe is not only a favorite family side dish at Thanksgiving, but it's also perfect year-round!
Ingredients
- 3/4 lb. Jimmy Dean regular pork sausage
- 3/4 lb. extra lean ground beef, 93% or higher
- 1 cup finely diced yellow onion
- 3/4 cup finely diced bell pepper, I like to use half red and half green
- 1/4 cup finely diced celery
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning, I use Tony Cachere's
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 bay leaves
- 5 cups of cooked parboiled rice
- 1/3 cup diced green onion
Instructions
- Cook the ground beef and pork sausage in a large skillet on medium-high about 5 minutes until it is mostly browned.
- Add the onion, bell pepper, and celery and continue to cook until the vegetables are soft and the meat is completely browned, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, cajun seasoning, black pepper, and salt and saute for another 2 minutes.
- Pour in the chicken stock, Worcestershire sauce, and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and continue to cook for about 5 minutes
- Stir in the rice. Cook for another 5 minutes.
- Remove from the stove and take out the bay leaves. Allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving. There will be a small amount of liquid remaining, but it should be absorbed fairly quickly.
- Top with diced green onion before serving.
Notes
The salt can vary depending on your chicken stock. It's always a good idea to start with half of the recommended salt and then add more if needed.
I use an extra lean ground beef (93% or higher) so that I don't have to drain the fat and a lot of the flavor. If you use a fattier ground beef, you will definitely want to drain the fat after you brown it.
Nutrition Information
Yield 8 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 427Total Fat 19gSaturated Fat 6gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 11gCholesterol 88mgSodium 1172mgCarbohydrates 34gFiber 2gSugar 4gProtein 28g
Do you have any traditional foods that you eat at the holidays? Have you tried dirty rice before?
Don’t forget to check out the other blogs participating below!
* A Home To Grow Old In * Hey Fitzy * Nourish and Nestle *
* Savvy Apron * Sweet Parrish Place * The Aspiring Home * The Red Painted Cottage *
This looks so delicious, Robin! I just want to reach in and grab some to eat. I’ll definitely have to give your recipe a try. It won’t be for Thanksgiving cause we have our own traditions, but I can see me making this as a side dish for another meal.
This is a great recipe for anytime, and sometimes I just eat it as my meal! Hope you like it, Carol!
Wow, it is so interesting that this is a Thanksgiving tradition to your family! I can see that being from New Orleans! It looks so good, and I bet my family would love it, thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Nicki! We are all about food at the holidays, and I can’t imagine a holiday without this dish!
I bet this would be delicious with a fried turkey. My family likes dishes like this for dinner so I will have to try it soon.
Hi Robin,
This recipe for dirty rice looks amazing! I am printing the recipe and will definitely be giving it a try. Thank you for sharing!
In general, I love Cajun food so I know I would love this. I think my boys would love it too, so gonna pin it to make is sooner than Thanksgivin…maybe tomorrow! Thanks for sharing your family recipes. They are always the best.
Hugs, my friend…
Lynn
Nice recipe! Love it β₯