Like a little zip in your food? Then this just might be the thing for you!
I’d bought some andouille sausage and threw it in the freezer because I didn’t use it right away. When I found this recipe, I remembered that spicy sausage in my freezer and knew I had to try it!
This was a crazy-easy recipe! The hardest part was chopping the onion and green pepper. Other than that, everything is just tossed into the crock pot and then you wait. I even stuck the chicken in the crock pot when it was still frozen!
Easy enough, right?
And I’m sure you want to know if it was good. Well, here’s what The Pretty One had to say (excuse the texting language):
“What the [whoops!] did you put in this soup my mouth catches on fire every bite i love it
i couldn’t taste anything for a week [he’d been sick] then I ate this and flavor exploded in my mouth!”
How do you like that endorsement? I had to agree with him – it was really good!
Now I’ve got to say if you aren’t a fan of spicy food, you can cut back the heat but still keep the flavor profile. You can reduce or eliminate the cayenne pepper, and cut back the Cajun seasoning. I’d still use 1 teaspoon Cajun / blackened seasoning for the flavor.
And you can always start mild and add more Cajun seasoning or cayenne later. Or pass those and everyone can add more spice if they like more of a bite.
Andouille sausage is a bit spicy, but I wouldn’t call it “hot.” It’s got great flavor so if you can handle some spice, I’d use it. If not, you can swap it out for regular smoked sausage.
This recipe is definitely a winner — great flavor with minimum effort. That’s how I like to cook!!
SLOW COOKER JAMBALAYA
Slightly adapted from Cats and Casseroles
Stuff you need:
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast [I used frozen chicken breasts and stuck them in the pot still frozen.]
1 pound andouille sausage, sliced [I used Eckrich or Johnsonville.]
1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes with juice
1 large onion, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chicken broth
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons dried parsley
2 teaspoons Cajun (blackened) seasoning
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 c instant rice
Now what?
Place all ingredients except rice in slow cooker. Cook on low for 7-8 hours, or on high for 3-4 hours.
Remove chicken and shred. Return to crock pot.
Cook rice according to package instructions. Add rice, as desired, into each individual serving of jambalaya. Store rice separately from rest of stew.
First of all… THANK YOU for posting this. Ever since I returned from NOLA, I have been craving jambalaya and was planning to make it this week. Now, I have a question, did you buy cooked andouille sausage? I was at the grocery store this week and bought some but its pre-cooked so I don’t know if that means I should just add it at the end. Thanks!
I believe it was already cooked since it was packaged like the smoked sausage that is pre-cooked. I put the sausage in at the beginning, and it wasn’t overcooked at all. I’d do it again, since the spice and smokiness of the sausage had an impact on the flavor of the dish. I hope you like it!
I have this in the crock pot as I write…waiting for the family to get home but i did take a taste. Yummy. I put everything in this morning and got home from work to a wonderful smelling house. All that was left to do is cook up some rice.
Glad to hear from you. I hope your family enjoys it as much as we do! With the cooler weather, I think I’m due to make this again.