Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A Creole dish consisting of rice that has been cooked with shrimp, oysters, ham, or chicken and seasoned with spices and herbs.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A spicy Creole dish of rice with ham, sausage, chicken, or shellfish, plus tomatoes, and seasoned with peppers, onions, herbs, and celery.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Any of various of rice-based dishes common in Louisiana Cajun or Creole cooking; most often with shrimp, oysters, chicken or ham

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun spicy Creole dish of rice and ham, sausage, chicken, or shellfish with tomatoes, peppers, onions, and celery

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Louisiana French, from Provençal jambalaia.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Louisiana Creole French jambalaya, origin ucertain, probably from Old Provençal

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Examples

  • Fried oysters and jambalaya is my Harry's standard.

    Great food in Queretaro 2005

  • There is apparently plenty of conjecture over the origin of the word jambalaya; some hold that it is a corruption of the French word for ham, jambon.

    Archive 2007-01-01 2007

  • There is apparently plenty of conjecture over the origin of the word jambalaya; some hold that it is a corruption of the French word for ham, jambon.

    At My Table 2007

  • When the leftovers were put in a pot with some rice and a bit of extra liquid and cooked until the rice was done, I then lifted the lid to take a look; even though I had no idea what the word jambalaya actually means, the contents of the pot in an onomatopoetic way looked like jambalaya if that makes sense - it is a dish that looks like it sounds, sort of a jumble of everything.

    At My Table 2007

  • When the leftovers were put in a pot with some rice and a bit of extra liquid and cooked until the rice was done, I then lifted the lid to take a look; even though I had no idea what the word jambalaya actually means, the contents of the pot in an onomatopoetic way looked like jambalaya if that makes sense - it is a dish that looks like it sounds, sort of a jumble of everything.

    Archive 2007-01-01 2007

  • However, the second part of your story where you claimed that black people patronize a business called jambalaya juice, that is completely false.

    CNN Transcript Oct 25, 2008 2008

  • • U.S. military purchases Gulf of Mexico seafood, boosting an industry battered by oil spill: Ten products, including fish, shrimp, oysters, crab cakes, and packaged Cajun dishes such as jambalaya and shrimp etouffee are being promoted at 72 base commissaries along the East Coast.

    President Obama visits the Chamber of Commerce; Dick Cheney calls Mubarak a 'friend'; DOD buys Gulf Coast seafood; NASA's 360-degree view of the sun Ed O 2011

  • They're trying to create an awareness among Taiwanese about an exotic rice dish called, "jambalaya," which few people here have ever heard of.

    Jambalaya Jumble Michael Turton 2007

  • Jambalaya is often made with ham, so the word "jambalaya" may be an amalgamation of the French words "jambon" and "a la," and an African word, "yaya," which means rice, reflective of both cultural influences from people in the Louisiana area.

    Archive 2006-02-01 2006

  • Jambalaya is often made with ham, so the word "jambalaya" may be an amalgamation of the French words "jambon" and "a la," and an African word, "yaya," which means rice, reflective of both cultural influences from people in the Louisiana area.

    New Song From the Gipsy Kings - Jambalaya 2006

Comments

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  • I heard Chef Paul Prudhomme pronounce this word something like "jumble-AYa". That's as close to authentic as one get's, I suppose.

    March 5, 2011