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Recipe: Slow Cooker Jambalaya

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Though this recipe is called Jambalaya, strictly speaking it is a Gumbo. The difference is rice is cooked in the Jambalaya (like a Paella), while Gumbo is served on a bed of rice. Rice is permitted in Paleo meal plans with the exception of Very Low Carb, 30 Day Reset, GAPS Friendly and Autoimmune and is therefore indicated as "optional". In this recipe the chicken, andouille sausage, onions and bell peppers should be sautéed (browned) before being placed in the slow cooker. If andouille sausage isn't available, kielbasa sausage is a good substitute.

jambalaya slow cooker recipe
Enjoy this classic dish made easy in the crockpot.

Type of dish: Dinner
Servings: 6
Equipment: Slow Cooker (crockpot), Sauté Pan

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
  • 1 lb andouille (or kielbasa) sausage, cut into thick slices
  • 1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes with juice
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 red bell peppers, seeded and chopped
  • 2 small jalapeños, cut in half, seeded and chopped
  • 1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1½ cups celery, chopped
  • 3 cups chicken broth or stock
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 2 tsp Cajun seasoning
  • 1 tsp cayenne powder
  • ½ tsp dried thyme
  • 1 lb cooked shrimp without tails
  • sea salt to taste
  • 1½ cups long grain white rice (optional)

Directions:

  1. Sauté chicken and sausage on medium heat until browned.
  2. Add onion and bell peppers and continue to cook for 5 minutes.
  3. Transfer to slow cooker with remaining ingredients except salt and shrimp,
  4. Cover and cook on low for 7 to 8 hours.
  5. If using white rice, add after 5½ hours. with an additional cup of stock.
  6. When the rice is completely cooked taste for salt, add shrimp and warm through (about 5 minutes).

Enjoy!

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18 Comments

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  1. To be gumbo or jambalaya the dish should I have rice. I too am from Louisiana. But it looks delicious no matter what. I suggest cauliflower rice be used. I have done jambalaya and shrimp creole both with it and it works very well.

  2. To anyone who has already made this: will it fit in my new 4qt. slow cooker? AND may I assume it’s 7 hrs. on low? Please someone get back to me; thanks!

  3. Why so politically correct?? Why not use bone-in chicken breasts with skin? Even better, why not whole legs, or thighs, or drumsticks?
    Waste not, want not. So much good nutrition sent down the drain.
    Re the shrimp, I would add it 5 minutes or even less before the end. You don’t want rubber shrimp. I once had paella in a highly reputed restaurant in Barcelona, with huge disappointment. They seemed to make it like a perpetual stew; start in the morning and keep it hot all day. The shrimp was still recognizable but just about inedible.

    • Many people are concerned with removing bones from dishes like stews, etc. I personally prefer bone-in chicken thighs with skin that are more succulent than breasts. Bones and skin do add more flavor.

    • Agree, okra great. I also think this is not a gumbo as suggested, gumbo I know has a roux.

  4. Cooked shrimp in the slow cooker for 7 -8 hours?? Wow – wouldn’t want to taste that result! They’re going to be inedible!

    • You add the shrimp AFTER slow-cooking for 7-8 hours. See, step 3 (“except salt and shrimp”) and step 5 (“add shrimp and warm through (about 5 minutes).”)
      =)

    • The recipe, as written, is not jambalaya. This is gumbo — BIG difference!!!! (I’m from Baton Rouge and I think I know jambalaya and gumbo pretty well. LOL).

    • There are many interpretations of “Cajun Seasoning”. It typically includes onion and garlic powder, dried oregano, basil and thyme, black or white pepper, a good dose of cayenne, and a lot of paprika. The Paleo Meal generator has a recipe for “Paleo Cajun Seasoning”