Slow Cooker Jambalaya, with chucks of chicken and andouille sausage and lots of shrimp, is a super flavorful one dish meal. Since Mardi Gras is just around the corner, my belly has been craving all those wonderful New Orleans foods.
It’s a southern favorite that does really well in a slow cooker.
I’m especially excited about Mardi Gras this year because guess what??!!
I’m going!!
(Note: This post was originally published January 9,2017.)
I haven’t been to Mardi Gras since I was a student at Tulane University and that was over 20 years ago. It’s going to be so much fun.
Jambalaya is one of my favorite foods from New Orleans. I love making this Crawfish Jambalaya, but for years I’ve been wanting to try a Slow Cooker Jambalaya. This was my first attempt, and I was really happy with how it turned out.
This Jambalaya has so many layers of flavors.
For some tomato flavor (I like a tomato-y Jambalaya), I used both diced tomatoes and tomato paste. For the liquid, I used a can of beef broth. You could use chicken broth instead, but I like the deeper flavor that beef broth has.
For flavoring, I of course started with the Holy Trinity– onion, green pepper, and celery. Then I added garlic, bay leaves, oregano, basil, Cajun seasoning, Tabasco sauce, cayenne pepper, and Worcestershire to round out the flavors.
Recipe Tips
To prevent a mushy mess, I cooked the rice separately but used the cooking liquid from the crock pot to cook it in so that the rice soaked up all that flavor that had been simmering away in the crock pot.
Don’t overcook the shrimp. The shrimp only need to go in the slow cooker for the last 30 minutes. Overcooked shrimp have a rubbery texture.
★★★★★
What readers are saying
Delicious!! My Husband has been wanting me to try and make Jambalaya since he went to Louisiana for a work trip. I have been nervous to attempt it until I found this recipe. He loved it!!
What Size Slow Cooker To Use?
A 6-quart slow cooker is the perfect size, but a slightly larger one will work too.
How Many People Does It Serve?
This recipe makes a big crock pot full of Jambalaya. Six very large servings or if you serve it with plenty of bread and maybe a salad, you could probably stretch it to 10.
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Storage
Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 days. Shrimp are highly perishable and I really don’t like to keep them for longer than 3 days.
Pin this now to find it later
Pin ItMore Slow Cooker Recipes To Try
- Slow Cooker Mississippi Pork Chops
- Slow Cooker Low Country Boil
- Crock Pot Cubed Steak and Gravy
- Slow Cooker Cajun Chicken Alfredo with Sausage
More Jambalaya Recipes
- Crawfish Jambalaya
- Instant Pot Jambalaya
- Paul Prudhomme’s Chicken and Tasso Jambalaya
- Jambalaya Stuffed Peppers
- Spaghetti Squash Jambalaya
Slow Cooker Jambalaya
Ingredients
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can beef broth
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
- 2 celery ribs, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound Andouille sausage, or use kielbasa, cut into slices
- 2 chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 1/2 cup white rice
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Combine 1st 12 ingredients in a 6-quart slow cookerand stir to combine.
- Add onion, green pepper, celery, garlic, sausage, and chicken. Stir to combine.
- Cover crock pot and cook on LOW 4 to 5 hours.
- Set a larger strainer/sieve over a large bowl and pour about 75% of liquid in the crock pot through strainer. You should have about 3 cups to cook the rice in. Add water to get 3 cups if necessary.
- Return all solids to crock pot. Stir in parsley and shrimp. Cover crock pot and cook on LOW 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring the 3 cups of liquid to a boil. Stir in rice and cook according to package directions.
- Add cooked rice to slow cooker and mix in. Serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Originally published January 9, 2017.
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This recipe was incredible! The only substitution I made was instead of chicken breasts I used boneless skinless chicken thighs for a deeper flavor. I did not use a crockpot or pressure cooker but instead used a large pot with a lid. Brought it all to a boil then simmer. Added shrimp about 1/2 hour before serving along with the rice and then let that simmer for approx 1/2 hour. Soooo good!!!!!
Can you use egg noodles or a different pasta instead of rice?
This is recipe is authentic and delicious. What is the serving size? My husband and I are using my fitness pal. Thank you!
Was a hit in my home turned out great
Instead of using uncooked rice, is it ok to use the 90 second rice and mix it at the end?
I made this yesterday for a potluck dinner. It was a big hit and the casserole dish that I served it in was cleaned out. I didn’t have any fresh parsley on hand so I used dried. Not a problem. I also did not cook the rice separately but rather added it uncooked into the crockpot with about an hour and a half cooking time left. I was asked to make this again as a side dish fir Easter. I think this time, I’m going to sautée the shrimp separately in garlic butter and then add to the jambalaya before serving.
why would you rate it if you haven’t tried it? grrrr
I can’t wait to try this recipe – looks so yummy!
Hello, Do you use raw shrimp and can I use pork instead of chicken and if so which cut.
Thank you it looks delicious.
This looks really nice, i am going to try it tomorrow.
Can I just ask, if I was going to add uncooked rice to the dish at the end, how long will the rice take to cook?
TIA
I added rice and shrimp after about 5 hours cooking on low, and the rice took another 90 minutes 🙁 Next time I’ll add rice at the beginning.
I’ve always wanted to try this!
How many does this feed?