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My Crockpot Jambalaya Recipe with Chicken and Shrimp is the perfect way to bring the taste of New Orleans home to your kitchen. Savor the Cajun flavors in this healthy, but hearty flavor-packed Crockpot Chicken and Shrimp Jambalaya recipe. You’ll love the warmth of this recipe, and the full-bodied flavors in an easy to make slow cooker meal.
Crockpot Jambalaya Recipe with Chicken and Shrimp
Mix it up with a combination of all of the above of chicken, shrimp or a healthy sausage. All it takes is your trusty crockpot and a little bit of spice to throw together this recipe. Think dinner party or your weekly meal prep!
Be transported back to the sights, sounds, and flavors of Mardi Gras as soon as your spoon hits your mouth with this epic crockpot recipe. About 10 minutes of prep time is all it takes – and of course, about 4-5 hours in your crockpot, to make this dish a reality. Get this recipe ready to go before you leave in the morning and enjoy a special treat for dinner. A perfect blend of protein, carbs and healthy fats from the chicken, the Crockpot Chicken, and Shrimp Jambalaya will be your new go-to.
Can I Add More Spice to This Crockpot Jambalaya?
Need more heat? Go ahead, add a little more Tony’s, or even some cayenne. I made this a bit milder than most would, simply because I know not everyone tolerates high spice levels. Cajun foods are often a bit more flavorful than some recipes, but this one can be adjusted to fit your needs.
If you are looking for a little more pep, try our Red Beans and Rice recipe. Continue the Cajun theme and add our Quinoa Jambalaya to your weekly rotation as well.
Can I Use Chicken Thighs Instead?
While I prefer using chicken breasts due to the health and fat content, you can definitely substitute chicken thighs. In fact, they will give this an even richer flavor to the jambalaya. Just grab boneless skinless chicken thighs if you decide to go that direction.
I have even grabbed chicken sausages to add to this recipe when I’ve found clean versions at the grocery store. This adds a whole other depth of flavor to a perfect warm slow cooker meal.
Can This Recipe be Frozen?
Yes! You can definitely make large batches of this crockpot jambalaya and freeze for future meals. I like to prep this recipe by adding all of the ingredients except the rice into a large freezer storage bag and labeling. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then pour into the slow cooker to cook the day you want to serve.
You can, of course, cook as directed, allow it to cool completely, then pour into freezer storage bags or freezer soup containers to label and date before freezing. Remember that liquids expand when they freeze, so definitely leave room in your container for this.
Ingredients
Chicken breasts
Shrimp
Brown rice
Green bell pepper
Celery
Yellow onion
Tomatoes
Garlic
Chicken broth
Tomato paste
Cajun seasoning
Salt
This was originally published on August 8, 2013, and updated on January 12, 2020.
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Crockpot Chicken and Shrimp Jambalaya
★★★★★5 from 2 reviews
Author:Whitney Carlson
Total Time:4 hours 10 minutes
Yield:81x
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Description
This Crockpot Jambalaya Soup can be made with shrimp, chicken, and/or sausage (or mix them all together!)! Throw it all in the crockpot and have a hearty and delicious meal.
The richness of the stock, the slow build of Creole spices, and the way the meat is cooked — in this case, caramelizing the sausage, which coaxes out more flavor and adds that appealing browned finish — also contribute to the deep, complex layers of this dish.
Creole jambalaya, also known as red jambalaya, contains tomatoes. Cajun or brown jambalaya does not. Jambalaya isn't thickened with roux, although some cooks do include a little skillet-browned flour.
There are two types of jambalaya: Cajun and Creole. Cajun jambalaya originates from the bayous of Louisiana, featuring andouille sausage and various veggies. Creole jambalaya incorporates tomatoes and shrimp, using influences from Spain, France, and African locals.
Creole-type dishes combine the qualities of a gumbo and a jambalaya. They are typically thicker and spicier than a gumbo, and the rice is prepared separately and used as a bed for the creole mixture, rather than cooked in the same pot as with a jambalaya.
The "holy trinity" in Cajun cuisine and Louisiana Creole cuisine is the base for several dishes in the regional cuisines of Louisiana and consists of onions, bell peppers and celery. The preparation of Cajun/Creole dishes such as crawfish étouffée, gumbo, and jambalaya all start from this base.
One of the biggest complaints when making jambalaya is that the rice ends up mushy. And there's two main culprits of this – choosing the wrong type of rice and over-stirring. For this recipe, you want long-grain white rice, like basmati or jasmine. Don't use short-grain rice.
Two main categories of jambalaya exist: Creole (or red) jambalaya, which is associated with the city of New Orleans and contains tomato, and Cajun (or brown) jambalaya, which contains no tomato and is more common in other parts of Louisiana. The recipe I'm focusing on here is the former, with tomato.
A cajun jambalaya, I'm reliably informed, should be somewhat dry, even slightly browned on the bottom, which rules out the soupier, wetter texture of those creole versions using tomatoes (Oliver advises cooks to aim for a “porridgey” consistency).
White rice: Long grain is traditional, but short grain white rice also works. Okra: Fresh or frozen; we will use this to help thicken the jambalaya. Salt and Black Pepper: Very important! Don't forget to taste and season with salt and pepper to taste at the end.
If you haven't got any andouille at home, you will want to substitute the ingredient with another sharply flavoured smoked sausage. Chorizo Chorizo is a good substitute for andouille's distinctly smoky flavour. Polish kielbasa is another substitute that you can use.
Acadiana style jambalaya originates from Louisiana's rural, low-lying swamp country where crawfish, shrimp, oysters, alligator, duck, turtle, boar, venison, nutria and other game were readily available. Any variety or combination of meats, including chicken or turkey, may be used to make jambalaya.
The one ingredient that seems to be fairly constant in all Jambalaya preparations though is some kind of sausage, and preferably a smoked one. Andouille, a spicy smoked sausage native to Louisiana, is the traditional choice.
From mushrooms to sliced squash, the addition of veggies not only helps your proteins go farther if you don't have a lot on hand, but it also adds different textures and shapes that make your jambalaya more visually interesting and flavorful.
One of the primary differences in Cajun jambalaya as opposed to the Creole variant is the absence of tomatoes. Instead, it relies on a dark roux (which is a cooked mixture of flour and fat) to achieve a deep, smoky flavor. Country meats like andouille sausage, tasso ham, or game meats take center stage.
Popular Cajun seasonings like Tony Chachere's and Slap Ya Mama get heat from red pepper, with black pepper, salt, and garlic powder in the mix to enhance the flavor of food. Creole seasoning rounds out spicy red pepper with herbs like thyme, oregano, basil, and bay leaf.
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