Crockpot Jambalaya

They have this great Jambalaya at a popular restaurant, Border Cafe, in my hometown. The place is always packed, there is always a wait, and it's incredibly loud. I'm not in love with the restaurant but I do enjoy their seafood tacos and always order a side of Jambalaya. Now, that's not exactly easy to find in New England. The restaurant is more Tex-Mex than it is Mexican, but most people don't seem to know the difference. 

Jambalaya is a good thing to cook if you have a bunch of leftovers or you are cooking for a crowd. Basically any meat goes, with the staples being sausage and shrimp. You can add beef, chicken, pork, or really anything you see fit. As you can see, it's not exactly easy to make in small portions. I find that if I'm portioning out large packs of chicken, beef, and such and I have an uneven amount to freeze, that becomes my Jambalaya meat. 

I definitely liked that you can make this in a crockpot. I'll tell you a few things that you have to be REALLY careful about...adding the shrimp and the rice. Small salad shrimp like this, that I chose so I didn't have to deal with tails, cook so fast! Add them right before you are going to serve this and barely cook them. Second, don't ever use sushi rice! I did the first time and it was awful. Jambalaya mush! I would say that I don't really agree with cooking that in the crockpot. Rice takes less than a half an hour to cook and I'd rather take that time cooking it on the stove and ensure it's just al dente than to add it to my dish and chance ruining a meal with a bunch of expensive meats in it that cooked all day!

As for the rest of it, just toss it all in the crockpot and cook on low for 5-6 hours or high for 2-3 hours.

 

3 links of sausage, sliced

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, diced
1/2 lb beef chuck, diced
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 stalks of celery, minced
1 medium red pepper, diced
1 medium yellow pepper, diced
1 can diced tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup beef broth
1/2 cup tomato soup
1 Tbsp oregano
1 Tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tsp Old Bay seasoning
1/2 Tsp thyme

1 package or can of salad shrimp
2 cups of cooked rice

Recipe Adapted from My Recipes