Easy Crock Pot Jambalaya Recipe
This Easy Crock Pot Jambalaya Recipe is a twist of a classic Louisiana favorite, simplified for busy home cooks. This slow cooker recipe features chicken and kielbasa sausage with a zesty Cajun seasoning and canned tomatoes. It’s a one-pot solution for flavorful weeknight dinners with minimal cleanup.
Crock Pot Jambalaya is a hearty meal that comes together easily and is budget-friendly. Whether you’re feeding a group or stocking your fridge for the week, this dish delivers bold flavor in every bite. It makes enough to feed a crowd or give you leftovers for days.
My easy slow cooker jambalaya is a favorite to make when we’re stuck in a dinner rut. It not only smells wonderful while it’s cooking, it tastes so good that my family loves having the leftovers the next day. For me, that’s a big dinner win.
Other recipes that are also family favorites and super easy to prep and cook is this Slow Cooker Chicken with Potatoes and Green Beans and my Stove-Top Stuffed Pork Chops. With a busy schedule, meals like these are a lifesaver giving me more time to what I need to do.
Easy Crock Pot Jambalaya Recipe
This jambalaya uses everyday pantry and fridge staples, with no seafood, making it ideal for those who prefer a simpler, meat-only version. Kielbasa adds a smoky, rich flavor, while chicken breasts keep the dish filling and lean.
It’s easy to adjust the heat level by modifying the cayenne pepper. Cooked rice is added when the meal is just about finished cooking. You can use cooked long-grain white rice or instant rice, whichever you prefer. With this slow cooker recipe, you can enjoy a flavorful dinner without spending hours in the kitchen.
Timesaving Tips and Variations
Crock pot recipes already make meal prepping easy but here are a few more tips to streamline the process and a few ways to change up the recipe.
- The night before, chop all the vegetables and store in an airtight container.
- You can also substitute chicken tenders for the chicken breasts.
- Cook the rice the night before so you just have to add it when it’s time.
- If you want to add raw shrimp, do so the last 5 minutes and cook until it’s pink and opaque.
- Swap the kielbasa for Andouille sausage or a spicy sausage.
- Want more spice? Up the cayenne or add some red pepper flakes.
Whether you’re meal prepping or feeding a crowd, these tips help you save time without cutting corners on flavor.
This dish traditionally has shrimp with the meats but not everyone in my family enjoys seafood, so I left it out.
What to Serve with Jambalaya?
To balance out the heartiness of this dish, serve it with something fresh and light. We like to serve it with a simple tossed salad or Homemade Garlic and Herb Swirl Bread Recipe. Here are a few other suggestions:
These sides enhance the dish’s flavors with their freshness and of course, you always need a little something sweet to round out the meal.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Suggested Tools to Make Jambalaya in a Crock Pot
Having a few basic tools ready makes prepping and cooking this dish a lot easier. You probably already have most of these in your kitchen.
- Hamilton Beach 6 Qt. Slow Cooker
- cutting board
- knife
- measuring cups and spoons
- wooden spoon
- medium saucepan
These tools keep things simple and stress-free. They help you get everything done with less mess and hassle.
Ingredients for Making Jambalaya
The ingredients for this dish are easy to find and come together to build big flavor with minimal effort. Most are pantry staples or basic fridge items.
- boneless skinless chicken breasts
- kielbasa sausage
- canned diced tomatoes
- onion
- celery
- green bell pepper
- minced garlic
- cajun seasoning
- cayenne pepper
- chicken broth
- dried oregano
- dried parsley
- dried thyme
- cooked white rice
How to Make This Easy Jambalaya Crockpot Recipe
Combine all ingredients except for the cooked rice into the slow cooker and cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours.
When the chicken is cooked through, add in rice and heat through. Serve and enjoy with one of the suggested sides or as is
Bookmark this Easy Crock Pot Jambalaya Recipe for busy nights when you want something homemade without the hassle. It’s packed with flavor, filling, and doesn’t require constant attention. Just set it, forget it, and stir in the rice when you’re ready to eat.
Easy Crock Pot Jambalaya Recipe
Equipment
- knife
- wooden spoon
- medium saucepan
Ingredients
- 5 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes
- 1 pound kielbasa or smoked sausage
- 2 cans (24.5 ounces) fire-roasted tomatoes, do not drain
- 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped into 1 inch pieces
- 1 medium green bell pepper, roughly chopped
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
- ½ to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 3 – 4 cups cooked white rice
Instructions
- Mix together all ingredients in the slow cooker except the rice (it will be added later.)
- Cover, and cook 6 to 8 hours on Low, or 3 to 4 hours on High.
- Mix in cooked rice cook the last 20 – 25 minutes, or until rice is heated through.NOTE: I cooked mine on low for 5½ and then added the rice and heated another 25 minutes.
Nutritional Disclaimer
“Blogghetti” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
2025 Alphabet Challenge – “J”
In creating this post, I am sharing it in the 2025 Alphabet Challenge, in which fellow foodies and I will share recipes with the letters of the alphabet. Every other week, we highlight a letter and the culinary wonders it inspires. Today is “J”, and I’m sharing an easy slow cooker recipe recipe. Here is what the others are sharing. Look at the recipes for the 2025 alphabet challenge and then check out 2024’s recipes!
- Sneha’s Recipe: Jeerem Meerem Powder/Cladin Masala-Homemade
- Mayuri’s Jikoni: Armenian Jajukh Salad
- Jolene’s Recipe Journal: Creamy Jalapeno Corn
- Food Lust People Love: Small Batch Strawberry Jam
- A Messy Kitchen: Jollof Rice
- Karen’s Kitchen Stories: Thai-Style Turkey and Jasmine Rice Soup
- A Day in the Life on the Farm: Jamaican Jerk Chicken
- Culinary Cam: Inspired by a One-Word Text: Jjamppong
- Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice: Sweet & Spicy Jalapeño Canned Tomato Salsa
- Magical Ingredients: Jalapeno Popper Dip
Enjoy!
I have an old coworker who would absolutely love this recipe. Jambalaya was one of his all-time faves and I know he would simply adore this crockpot version!
Slow cookers make our lives so much easier. This sounds like a great recipe.
So yummy! We make a similar stew and call it gumbolaya because we add okra as well. Great, comforting dinner, fantastic leftovers.
Meals with spices and herbs always tend to taste so much better the next day. Am sure that is why your family enjoys your jambalaya the next day.
Love a slow cooker meal for busy days! This looks delicious!
This sounds lika an easy meal option for busy days!