Mardi Gras isn’t complete without some Creole food, so throw this Slow Cooker Jambalaya on while you hit up a parade or bake some beignets! Andouille sausage, chicken, and shrimp marry with Cajun-spiced rice and vegetables in this easy weekday or weekend meal.
Guess what?! I’m not French. At least not as far as I know. I have yet to bite the bullet on one of those 23-and-Me’s.
I’ve only been to Louisiana once, and I have so little knowledge of Cajun and Creole food, it’s actually shameful.
Abe randomly made some jambalaya several years ago with some gator meat he stumbled upon, though it turned out more like a paella. False advertisement aside, it was delicious, but it got me wondering about the differences in the two dishes.
Let’s get this out of the way – we won’t pretend that this is a beautiful dish. It’s definitely not, at least not in the traditional sense. But once you get past the tomato-tinted hue of your bowl and dig in, you might just feel a bit Cajun yourself.
This page includes step by step instructions, as well as tips and notes. If you’d like to skip all that, feel free to scroll down to the full, printable recipe card at the bottom of the post. There is also a “jump to recipe” button at the top of the page if you’d rather not exercise your scrolling finger!
It all starts with a beautiful mirepoix.
The holy trinity of Cajun cooking: onions, peppers, and celery.
I won’t tell you what kind of onions you should use. We’re partial to red ones, but if you’re a sweet yellow fan, or all you have on hand is white, it won’t really matter. I guess even shallots would work in a pinch, but that seems like such a waste.
As far as peppers go, if you are stuck with only green ones, no worries. your dinner may not be as colorful, but it will taste just as delish. I rarely have red or yellow ones myself, except when I plan ahead or have a batch blog cooking day on the horizon.
Because I am the worst vegetable eater on the planet.
I love them so much, but after my (excessive) grocery purchases are put away in the fridge, it’s like they fall into a black hole. I swear, the contents of my crisper drawer go to another dimension. Most of the time I don’t see the sweet veggies again until they’re just past their “are you sure you wanna eat that?” stage.
There just aren’t enough hours in the days I get to spend cooking to use everything up. I bought the most beautiful rainbow carrots a couple weeks ago at Whole Foods and all I really wanted to do was style them for an Instagram post, then eat them raw.
They’re currently sitting on top of my compost pile, shriveled and discolored. They found the doorway to the black hole.
Not only do I murder plants, I murder defenseless root vegetables. The humanity.
3/4 of the ingredients in this slow cooker jambalaya were bought the night before I cooked it. Thank you, 10-pound bag of rice and frozen chicken breast – you have yet to fail me.
Oh, and the scallions. I propagated those from roots, so technically I had those, too. How about that? Something edible that I haven’t sent to a timely death!
What’s the difference between jambalaya and paella?
When you compare these two dishes, you’re definitely going to notice some similarities in ingredients. Rice, garlic, some seafood, sometimes chicken in both. But the flavor profiles are very distinct.
Paella, hailing from Spain, tends to have a more subtle flavor that is dominated by saffron. Jambalaya is much more robust and spicy, thanks to the Cajun-style seasonings and use of sausage.
While jambalaya is enjoyed all year long in the United States, it’s particularly popular during Mardi Gras. In New Orleans, you’d be hard pressed not to find a version in several restaurants, served alongside big bowls of Seafood Gumbo, heaping plates of fluffy beignets, and tall Hurricane Drinks.
Ingredients
- Rice – uncooked! Long grain is our go-to, but use what you have.
- Chicken – breast or thighs both work great here.
- Andouille sausage – if you use anything but this, it’s just not going to be jambalaya!
- Shrimp – fresh or thawed from frozen. They don’t get thrown in until the last bit of cook time, so any size works.
- Bell peppers – green, red, and yellow. Or orange. Or purple if you can find them! The more color, the better.
- Celery
- Onion – we like red, but your favorite type is fine!
- Fresh garlic
- Dry white wine – no need to break the bank here, cheap wine is fine. You can also just use more broth if you abstain.
- Chicken broth
- Crushed tomatoes – the canned one are perfect for this slow cooker dinner.
- Creole seasoning – homemade or store bought, it’s up to you!
- Red pepper flakes – optional, and to taste.
- Thyme – dry or fresh. Check the recipe below for amounts, since dried is much more potent than fresh!
- Bay leaves
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- Cilantro & scallions – optional, for garnish.
For exact ingredient measurements and recipe instructions, scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the post!
How to make Slow Cooker Jambalaya
- Grease a 5- or 6-quart slow cooker crock with non-stick cooking spray.
- Slice sausage into ¼-inch discs. In a skillet set over medium-high heat, brown the sausage for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Deglaze the pan with the wine, scraping the browned bits with a spatula. Transfer to the prepared slow cooker.
- Add cubed chicken, bell peppers, celery, onion, garlic, chicken broth, tomatoes, Creole seasoning, pepper flakes, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper, stirring to combine.
- Cover and cook for 3 1/2 to 4 hours on high. Stir in rice and cook another 30 minutes until rice is fully cooked and tender. Add shrimp and cook 15 minutes more, or until shrimp are pink and cooked through.
- Gently fluff jambalaya with a fork before serving. Garnish with chopped cilantro and/or scallions if desired, and serve with pepper sauce on the side (if you like it extra hot).
More recipes perfect for Mardi Gras!
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Slow Cooker Jambalaya
Ingredients
- 12 ounces fully cooked andouille sausage 1 package
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch cubes
- 3 bell peppers green, red, and yellow, diced
- 3 ribs celery chopped
- 1 red onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 cups unsalted chicken broth
- 28 ounces (can) crushed tomatoes
- 3-4 tablespoons Creole seasoning
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- Kosher salt to taste
- Cracked black pepper to taste
- 1 ½ cups white rice uncooked
- ½ pound uncooked shrimp peeled and de-veined
- Cilantro for garnish (optional)
- Scallions for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Grease a 5- or 6-quart slow cooker pot with non-stick cooking spray.
- Slice sausage into ¼-inch discs. In a skillet set over medium-high heat, cook sausage for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it begins to brown. Deglaze the pan with the wine, scraping the browned bits with a spatula. Place in prepared slow cooker.
- Add cubed chicken, bell peppers, celery, onion, garlic, chicken broth, tomatoes, Creole seasoning, pepper flakes, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper, stirring to combine.
- Cover and cook for 3.5 hours on high. Stir in rice and cook another 30 minutes until rice is fully cooked and tender. Add shrimp and cook 15 minutes more, or until shrimp are pink and cooked through.
- Gently fluff jambalaya with a fork before serving. Garnish with chopped cilantro and/or scallions if desired, and serve with pepper sauce on the side (if you like it extra hot!)
Hezzi-D says
Love Jambalaya and this looks delicious!
Danielle says
I love that you can make this in the slow cooker. I get so lazy, and anything I can cook in the slow cooker (or soon to be Instant pot once I take the plunge) is great in my book. And jambalaya is one of those great comfort foods.
Erica says
It tastes the same, as long as you don’t overdo the rice! Funny you mentioned the IPot – I thought about doing this in there instead! I have the method in my brain – I should put up and alternate cooking method. 🙂 Lazy cooks ftw!
Sam @ The Culinary Compass says
This looks great! I’m a few days late, but still totally want to make this!
Robert Lee says
Being from Sorrento in Ascension Parish, I’m always interested in someone else’s method for preparing Jambalaya. In my little corner of Louisiana, you might be excommunicated for adding tomatoes to Jambalaya. It just isn’t done. But since you started out by calling the dish “Creole,” I’ll give you a pass. Andouille was always reserved for gumbo. We use a good quality smoked sausage and something called “jambalaya pork” (sometimes chicken) for Jambalaya. We brown the sausage and pork and then in the same pot we cook the trinity until it’s caramelized (gives the jambalaya the classic brown color). And while your recipe sounds more like “paella” (minus the saffron) to me, I’m probably going to try it. I’ll probably 86 the white wine, cilantro and the slow cooker.