This Slow Cooker Jambalaya with chicken, andoille sausage, shrimp and rice is a great meal for an easy family weeknight dinner.

I don’t use my crockpot as often as I should. I equate my crockpot use to exercise: I don’t do it as often as I should and every time I do, I wonder why I don’t do it more often. Using a slow cooker is one of the must have modern conveniences every mom must enjoy. Even though a lot of crockpot recipes still involve a bit of prep work, and rarely can you just dump things into a slow cooker and have something wonderful evolve, the sheer fact that you can prep something ahead of time, set it and forget it, clean up your mess, walk away, and come home to a hot home cooked meal is simply wonderful. You know how things almost always taste better when someone else makes it for you? Take, for example, your morning coffee. Why is it that it always tastes better when someone else makes it for you, yet its exactly the same and the only difference is that you didn’t have to do it yourself. That’s how I feel when I cook with the crockpot. I’ll come home in the evening after running the kids all around town for their after school activities, and I’m greeted by the wonderful smell of a hot and fresh cooked homemade dinner. Yes, I was the one who made it, but it still feels like a treat to me. Weird, I know.

This slow cooker jambalaya is a great meal because its full of everything you want: meat, veggies, starch, and lots of flavor. My recipe is very mild because I want the kids to eat it. But the husband and I have to kick up the heat with some cayenne pepper sauce to bring it to a level that satisfies our taste buds. However spicy you like your food, this is a fantastic meal and is perfect for the busiest of families.

This Slow Cooker Jambalaya with chicken, andoille sausage, shrimp and rice is a great meal for an easy family weeknight dinner.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon oil I used avocado oil, but you can use canola too
1 pound skinless boneless chicken (half white, half dark meat)
2 medium or 1 large onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper chopped
3 small or two large stalks celery, chopped
2 garlic cloves minced
12.8 ounce package chicken andoille sausage sliced
14 1/2- ounce can diced tomatoes undrained
1 14-ounce can chicken broth (I had a large box so I poured it into the empty tomato can to measure)
a dash of cayenne pepper more if you like it spicy
1 heaping teaspoon chili powder
1 level teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon thyme
pinch of smoked paprika
1 pound shrimp peeled and deveined
2 cups cooked white rice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
chopped scallions for garnish
cayenne pepper sauce like Frank's Red Hot

Instructions

Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add oil to pan, then cook chicken until slightly brown, about 4 minutes on each side. Remove from pan, cut into bite sized pieces, then add to your slow cooker.
Add onion, bell pepper, and celery to pan and saute for about 5 minutes until tender. Add sliced sausage and garlic and cook another couple of minutes. , and garlic to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add onion and sausage mixture to slow cooker. Add diced tomatoes, chicken broth, and seasonings to slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 5 hours.
About 15 minutes before serving, add shrimp to slow cooker and stir. They are done when they are white and pink all the way through.
To serve, scoops some rice into a bowl, add some jambalaya, garnish with parsley and scallions, and add additional hot sauce if desired as this recipe is very mild without it.

Questions about the nutrition information?Check out my Nutrition Disclaimer