Jambalaya

I know that I promised a post about sea salt caramel and I WILL post it, but today is cloudy, a bit dreary and they’re calling for rain in the evening so I decided to post an easy, delicious jambalaya recipe instead. It just goes with my warm, comfort food mood. This recipe is a huge hit in my house. In fact, my parents LOVE the show Seinfeld so making jambalaya causes my dad to walk around the house like this:

This jambalaya is done in the crock pot so you can just put it all together and then let it cook all day on low!

You’ll need:

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 can of chicken broth

1 can of tomato paste

2 medium bell peppers

1 medium onion

1/2 a jalapeño*

1 Serrano chili*

4 celery ribs

5 garlic cloves

3 teaspoons dried parsley flakes

2 teaspoons dried basil

1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoons salt

3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce. I went with Franks Red Hot Sauce, but any will do.

1 pound of chicken breasts

1 pound smoked sausage

Rice

*These were leftovers from when I made grilled corn pico de gallo so I decided to add them to the jambalaya on a whim and it was delicious! 

First I would like to take a moment and say how flipping awesome Reynolds slow cooker liners are! We use our crock pot a lot in my house and these have a been an incredible investment for us. They keep the food from sticking to the inside of the slow cooker and they make clean up super easy! Okay, that's enough of my unsponsored plug for Reynolds. 

The first thing you want to do it take your diced tomatoes UNdrained, chicken broth, and tomato paste and combine them in your slow cooker. Make sure you really get the paste mixed in.

Next you chop up your onion, bell peppers, Serrano, jalapeno, and celery and then add them to your tomato mixture.

Then you cut up your chicken into one inch pieces, slice up the smoked sausage, and then add them to your crock pot. 

Now it's time to kick up the flavor and season this jambalaya up! Mince your garlic then add it to the slow cooker along with the parsley flakes, basil, oregano, salt, cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper, and hot pepper sauce. This is really a time to experiment with flavor. I gave you measurements close to what I used but don't be afraid to add or take away. I made this jambalaya so my whole family could enjoy it, but you can definitely add more spice or take some away. If I was just making it for myself I would have added more cayenne, more hot sauce, and more crushed red pepper flakes. Food is meant to be experimented with so have fun with it and don't fear changing some of the spice additions. 

Once you've added all your spices give everything a mix, set your slow cooker on low and go about your day!

About a twenty minutes before you want to eat you'll need to prepare your rice according to the directions. Then you just serve the jambalaya over the rice and enjoy!

If you want, you can also choose to add shrimp to the jambalaya. Make sure they are uncooked, peeled and deveined. You can add them to the jambalaya about twenty to thirty minutes before you're ready to eat. If you add them before that they will get tough and rubbery which is not yummy. 

The Recipe Recap:

You will need:

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 can of chicken broth

1 can of tomato paste

2 medium bell peppers

1 medium onion

1/2 a jalapeño*

1 Serrano chili*

4 celery ribs

5 garlic cloves

3 teaspoons dried parsley flakes

2 teaspoons dried basil

1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoons salt

3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce. I went with Franks Red Hot Sauce, but any will do.

1 pound of chicken breasts

1 pound smoked sausage

Rice

*These were leftovers from when I made grilled corn pico de gallo so I decided to add them to the jambalaya on a whim and it was delicious! 

1. Mix the diced tomatoes UNdrained, chicken broth, and tomato paste in your slow cooker. Make sure you really get the paste mixed in.

2. Chop up the onion, bell peppers, Serrano, jalapeno, and celery and then add them to your tomato mixture.

3. Cut the chicken into one inch pieces, slice up the smoked sausage. Add them to the crock pot. 

4. Mince the garlic then add it to the slow cooker along with the parsley flakes, basil, oregano, salt, cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper, and hot pepper sauce. 

5. Stir everything up, set the slow cooker on low and cook for 5-7 hours.

6. Serve the jambalaya over cooked rice.