Easy Homemade Dirty Rice
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With Creole seasoning, turkey sausage, vegetables, and rice, my Cajun-style easy homemade recipe for dirty rice is the perfect flavorful weeknight supper to make for your family.
Some of the best food comes out of Louisiana, like this recipe for dirty rice, which is a Cajun classic. Now, it’s called “dirty rice” (also known as Cajun rice and rice dressing) because traditionally, it was cooked with minced chicken livers, spices, and vegetables, which turned the white rice “dirty”. Over the years, many versions of this filling Creole supper have sprouted up, so this is my take.
This dirty rice recipe is a great go-to meal for busy weekdays. It also happens to be one of my favorite make-ahead meals to take on camping trips. I always make up a double batch of this recipe for dirty rice ahead of time, refrigerate or freeze it, and have instant comfort food whenever we need it. Since it is so easy to reheat, this is one of those recipes that I suggest always doubling. By simply doubling a few meals from time to time, you can build up a bank of convenience meals and shop your freezer rather than stopping by a drive-through.
Now, I’m bypassing chicken livers in favor of turkey sausage. What else do you need? Rice, Creole seasoning, dried or fresh parsley, onion, bell pepper, celery (a.k.a the Holy Trinity in Cajun cooking), and minced garlic. Weeknight meals don’t get much easier than this. We just have to chop up our vegetables, cook our rice, and slowly add all of the ingredients to a skillet. I can never resist a one-pan meal, how about you? Better yet, it’s ready to serve in 30 minutes. Serve with BBQ Chicken Breast in Oven, Southern Fried Chicken Recipe (Fuss-Free), Simple Southern Fried Catfish and you will have the perfect meal.
The Creole seasoning adds so much flavor to this simple Cajun dirty rice recipe. It’s hearty, filling, and a must-make, so let’s go!
Recipe Ingredients
- Cooked rice (to decrease carbs you can use cauliflower rice)
- Creole seasoning
- Dried or fresh parsley
- Onion
- Bell pepper
- Turkey sausage
- Celery
- Chopped or minced garlic
Helpful Kitchen Tools
How to Make The Best Dirty Rice Recipe at Home
Chop all your herbs and veggies: bell pepper, celery, parsley, and onion. You can use dried parsley if you prefer.
Place these in a large skillet along with your sausage and minced garlic.
Chop up your sausage a bit and cook that over medium to medium-high heat.
Cook this until the sausage is cooked through and the veggies are tender.
Stir in your Creole seasoning.
I use two and a half tablespoons and it is perfect for us. You may want to start with a little less and taste it. You may end up using a lot more!
Lookin’ good!
Toss in cooked rice.
Stir that up well and make sure your rice is heated through.
Sit down with a glass of iced tea and a fine meal!
Storage
Leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months. This dish tastes just like it was freshly made when you reheat it in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Recipe Notes
- I LOVE Jennie-O turkey sausage. The mild and hot are both really good. That is the main brand I recommend if you can find it. I get it at Publix. If you can only find Butterball sausage, I’d just use ground beef or ground pork instead.
- While long grain white rice is the most popular, you can also use brown rice or wild rice.
Recipe FAQs
Can I use Cajun seasoning instead?
You can! Cajun seasoning is more pepper-heavy and thus spicier than Creole seasoning, which features various herbs like oregano, basil, and thyme. If you want to use Creole seasoning but add a little bit more heat, add 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (or more to taste).
What is in Zatarain’s Dirty Rice?
Zatarain’s Dirty Rice Dinner Mix is made with long grain rice, onion, garlic, red and green bell pepper, and spices like red pepper flakes and paprika. So our recipe for dirty rice is very similar and a bit of a Zatarain copycat version.
How do you make Popeye’s Cajun Rice?
Popeye’s Cajun Rice side dish is also very similar to our recipe. However, Popeye’s uses ground beef and minced chicken gizzards. They also use more spices than just Creole seasoning, like garlic powder, celery seed, cayenne pepper, and coarse ground black pepper.
What do you serve with dirty rice?
This dirty rice is the perfect main dish as it is. But if you’d prefer to serve it as a side, serve it with some fried catfish, blackened chicken, or fried chicken, Popeye’s style.
You may also like these rice recipes:
Crockpot Fiesta Chicken and Rice
Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Rice Casserole
Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 4-5 cups cooked rice
- 1 pound uncooked turkey sausage or ground beef
- 1-3 tablespoons Creole seasoning* I use Tony Chachere's
- 1 celery stalk, chopped
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1/2 bell pepper, chopped
- 2 tablespoons chopped or minced garlic
- 4 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley or 2 tablespoons dried parsley
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium heat, place celery, bell pepper, garlic, onion, parsley, and sausage. Break up the sausage and cook all, stirring regularly, until sausage is fully cooked and vegetables are tender.1 pound uncooked turkey sausage, 1 celery stalk, chopped, 1 small onion, chopped, 1/2 bell pepper, chopped, 2 tablespoons chopped or minced garlic, 4 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
- Add the Creole seasoning and stir. Then stir in the rice and continue cooking over medium heat until rice is heated through, stirring well the whole time.4-5 cups cooked rice, 1-3 tablespoons Creole seasoning*
Notes
Nutrition
As always, your perspective is so inspiring. There is always an upside – we just have to find it. 🙂 I’m going to try this recipe with vegan sausage. I realize that may be blasphemy in the South, but I love adapting your recipes to suit our food preferences. Thanks for all the inspiration – both in life and in food.
P.S. Happy to hear you’re up and around and healing well. Take care and be safe!
Made this tonight with some ground venison that was already in the freezer and instead of cajun seasoning, I used a store brand “soul season” because thats what I had. Loved it and made so much! I will have leftovers for a week! I just wanted to tell you this recipe was a huge example of how much I have changed since I found your blog. You posted on another recipe something about making do with what you have in your kitchen, that your grandmother wouldnt have driven to the country store to pick up one ingredient she didnt have. This was HUGE to me as I would have! If I did not have the recipe exactly as written, I wouldnt make it. You have saved me so much time and money!! Thanks!
Made this again using turkey sausage. Had to add about 1/2 cup of beef broth to give it some extra flavor and next time I’ll boil the rice in beef broth. Also this time, I sprinkled the Creole seasoning and tasted, sprinkled and tasted and it was spot on! Made it much lower in calories and was every bit as tasty. It won’t be the last time I make it.
I am so glad to hear that you are enjoying the recipe Valerie!!
I just made this for dinner, and it was great! This recipe is definitely a keeper!
I’m a born and raised Texan, but my daddy is from Alabama and my mama is from Tennessee. I was raised on a combination of southern fare and good ol’ Tex-Mex. I literally laughed out loud when I read your “Note to all Texans.” Thanks for the laugh!
Christy,
I usually make my own creole spice. Is Tony Chachere’s pretty spicy? I have been afraid to try it thinking it is too spicy for me.
Linda
I personally don’t think it is too spicy…of course everyone’s tastes are different but I find it pretty mild.
Made this last Friday night with the hamburger I had on hand but can’t wait to try it with sausage later this week. You Rock! Great recipes and wonderful attitude.