I absolutely adore Cajun food! The combination of rustic rich flavors with a nice spicy kick make my palate very very happy.
And jambalaya is definitely at the top of my “food favorites” list. After all, how can one go wrong mixing so many different types of meat in a single dish? That’s my husband’s theory, anyways.
Its comfort-food-carnivore-catering nature make jambalaya an excellent fall “football” season food. Despite the horrid heatwave we’ve been in the midst of here in southern California lately, I’m a firm believer in “seasonal” cooking — especially football season. I love football and I love cooking the right dishes for the right games (see my Spicy Smoky Slow-Cooker Pork Chili for another fabulous “football worthy” food). After my beloved Trojans’ upsetting loss to the Washington Huskies, I needed just the right spicy kick-them-in-the-rump dinner for this Saturday night’s game against Washington State. Jambalaya fit the bill.
My dilemma? Jambalaya traditionally requires a bit of culinary hand-holding — adding ingredients in stages, tending to the stove top, etc. — and Jeff and I had another big hike planned for most of that day. There’s no way we would have time to whip up a traditional batch of jambalaya by the time we got home, not if we wanted to enjoy the games (my husband is, unfortunately, a <sigh> Notre Dame fan, and Notre Dame had a 5:00pm PST game time).
So, I opted to forgo tradition in favor of this modified slow-cooker jambalaya recipe by Robin Miller to allow us to “cook” while out hiking and have a super tasty dinner ready for our big games. We were not disappointed. It tasted great!
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
- ½ pound andouille sausage, diced
- 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, chopped (our addition; not in original recipe)
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped (we used 2 Anaheim peppers)
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons Cajun or Creole seasoning
- 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper (our addition; not in original recipe. Less (or none) if you don't like heat)
- 2 teaspoon hot sauce (originally recipe calls for just 1 teaspoon)
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 pound frozen raw shrimp, thawed and peeled
- 3 cups cooked rice (we use brown rice)
- In a slow cooker, combine chicken, sausage, tomatoes, onion, green pepper, celery, garlic and chicken broth. Stir in oregano, Cajun seasoning, cayenne pepper, hot sauce, bay leaves, and thyme.
- Cover, and cook on LOW for 7 hours or on HIGH for 3 hours. Stir in the thawed shrimp, cover and cook until the shrimp is heated through, about 5 minutes. Discard bay leaves and spoon mixture over cooked rice.
