Slow Cooker Jambalaya with Sausage

Jambalaya was born for the slow cooker: sausage, chicken, peppers and rice all giving their flavour to one pot of tomato-rich broth. This version keeps the soul of the dish - smoked andouille, the onion-pepper-celery trinity, a real hit of Cajun seasoning - while letting the cooker do the long simmer. Twenty minutes of chopping and browning in the morning buys you a bowl like the one pictured: separate grains of rice stained deep red, chunks of sausage, and green onions scattered over the top.

The one thing slow cooker jambalaya recipes often get wrong is the rice. Cook it in the pot from the start and it turns to porridge; stir in par-cooked rice near the end and every grain stays distinct. That timing trick is built into the steps below. If slow cooker soups and stews are your weeknight pattern too, our slow cooker chicken tortilla soup uses the same load-it-and-leave-it logic.

Heat is adjustable at the table with hot sauce, which is how it should be - the pot itself is seasoned warmly, not fiercely, so everyone at the table can eat it. Leftovers, should there be any, reheat like a dream.

Brown the sausage first - it matters

Five minutes of browning the andouille in a skillet before it goes into the cooker does two jobs: it renders a little of the smoky fat, which then coats the vegetables, and it gives the sausage slices browned edges that survive the long cook instead of turning pale and soft. Chicken thighs go in raw - they have hours to become tender - but the sausage step is worth every second. Use the same pan to soften the trinity vegetables briefly and you pick up all the browned bits too.

Rice timing is the whole game

Long-grain white rice needs about 35 to 45 minutes in the hot cooker at the end, stirred in with an extra splash of broth. Brown rice will not cook in that window - if you want brown rice, cook it separately and stir it through at serving. Check the rice at 35 minutes: grains should be tender with the faintest bite. If the jambalaya looks dry before the rice is done, add hot broth a quarter cup at a time rather than cold, which would drop the temperature and stall the cooking.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (15 ml)
• 1 pound andouille sausage, sliced into rounds (450 g)
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut in chunks (680 g)
• 1 large yellow onion, diced (200 g)
• 1 large green bell pepper, diced (180 g)
• 3 celery stalks, diced (120 g)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced (12 g)
• 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes (800 g)
• 2 cups chicken broth (480 ml)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste (32 g)
• 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning (14 g)
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (3 g)
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme (2 g)
• 2 dried bay leaves (1 g)
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (3 g)
• 1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice (285 g)
• 1/2 cup extra chicken broth, hot, for the rice (120 ml)
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced (40 g)
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce, for serving (15 ml)

Amounts are for the yield below. US customary measures first, grams in brackets for scale users.

Step-by-step instructions

1. Brown the sausage. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the sausage rounds for 4 to 5 minutes, turning once, until browned at the edges. Transfer to the slow cooker, leaving the fat in the pan.
2. Soften the trinity. Add the onion, bell pepper and celery to the same skillet and cook for 4 minutes, scraping up the browned bits, until just softened. Stir in the garlic for the last 30 seconds, then scrape everything into the cooker.
3. Load the cooker. Add the chicken chunks, crushed tomatoes, 2 cups of broth, tomato paste, Cajun seasoning, paprika, thyme, bay leaves and salt to the cooker. Stir to combine, cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours or on high for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the chicken is very tender.
4. Add the rice. Stir in the rice and the extra hot broth. Cover and cook on high for 35 to 45 minutes more, stirring once halfway, until the rice is tender and has absorbed most of the liquid. The jambalaya should look moist and glossy, like the bowl pictured, not dry.
5. Rest and finish. Remove the bay leaves. Let the jambalaya stand, covered and off the heat, for 10 minutes so the rice finishes steaming and the grains settle. Fluff gently with a fork.
6. Serve. Spoon into warm bowls and scatter the sliced green onions generously over the top. Pass hot sauce at the table so everyone sets their own heat level.

Nutrition estimate

Nutrition figures are estimates calculated from standard ingredient data for the yield stated. Your actual values will vary with brands, substitutions and portion sizes — treat them as a guide, not a guarantee.

Storage & reheating

Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days; the rice will drink up sauce as it sits, so reheat gently on the stove with a splash of broth or water until steaming. Jambalaya freezes well for up to 2 months - thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat the same way. Nutrition estimates vary with sausage brands, which differ a lot in fat and sodium.

Slow Cooker Jambalaya with Sausage

Recipe by Ahsan ul Haq, FryDaily editor · Published 21 October 2026

Smoky sausage and chicken simmered with tomato rice in the slow cooker, showered with green onions to serve.

Yield: 8 servings  ·  Scale: 1x2x3x

Prep20 minutes

Cook3 hours 30 minutes

Total3 hours 50 minutes

Servings8 servings

Calories430 kcal

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Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (15 ml)
• 1 pound andouille sausage, sliced into rounds (450 g)
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut in chunks (680 g)
• 1 large yellow onion, diced (200 g)
• 1 large green bell pepper, diced (180 g)
• 3 celery stalks, diced (120 g)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced (12 g)
• 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes (800 g)
• 2 cups chicken broth (480 ml)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste (32 g)
• 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning (14 g)
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (3 g)
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme (2 g)
• 2 dried bay leaves (1 g)
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (3 g)
• 1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice (285 g)
• 1/2 cup extra chicken broth, hot, for the rice (120 ml)
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced (40 g)
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce, for serving (15 ml)

Tick ingredients off as you prep, and tap a step below to mark it done as you cook. Scaling adjusts the listed amounts - seasoning to taste stays your call.

Instructions

1. Brown the sausage. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the sausage rounds for 4 to 5 minutes, turning once, until browned at the edges. Transfer to the slow cooker, leaving the fat in the pan.
2. Soften the trinity. Add the onion, bell pepper and celery to the same skillet and cook for 4 minutes, scraping up the browned bits, until just softened. Stir in the garlic for the last 30 seconds, then scrape everything into the cooker.
3. Load the cooker. Add the chicken chunks, crushed tomatoes, 2 cups of broth, tomato paste, Cajun seasoning, paprika, thyme, bay leaves and salt to the cooker. Stir to combine, cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours or on high for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the chicken is very tender.
4. Add the rice. Stir in the rice and the extra hot broth. Cover and cook on high for 35 to 45 minutes more, stirring once halfway, until the rice is tender and has absorbed most of the liquid. The jambalaya should look moist and glossy, like the bowl pictured, not dry.
5. Rest and finish. Remove the bay leaves. Let the jambalaya stand, covered and off the heat, for 10 minutes so the rice finishes steaming and the grains settle. Fluff gently with a fork.
6. Serve. Spoon into warm bowls and scatter the sliced green onions generously over the top. Pass hot sauce at the table so everyone sets their own heat level.

Calories: 430 kcalProtein: 30 gCarbohydrates: 38 gFat: 17 gSaturated fat: 5 gSodium: 890 mgFiber: 3 gSugar: 6 g

Recipe by Ahsan ul Haq · FryDaily. Printing? This card is designed to print cleanly on its own.

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