Shrimp Jambalaya

My Jambalaya, with large pieces of chicken, sausage and tons of shrimp, is a delight.

You should use diced tomatoes and tomato paste, a can of beef broth, onion, green pepper, and celery. Then I added garlic, bay leaves, oregano, basil, Cajun seasoning, Tabasco sauce, cayenne pepper, and Worcestershire to round out the flavors.

It is not a bad idea to cook the rice separately but use the liquid from the crock pot to cook it in so that the rice soaked up all that flavor that had been simmering away in the crock pot.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can beef broth
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato paste
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound Andouille sausage or use kielbasa, cut into slices
• 2 chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 1/2 cup white rice
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

INSTRUCTIONS

• Combine 1st 12 ingredients in a 6-quart slow cookerand stir to combine.
• Add onion, green pepper, celery, garlic, sausage, and chicken. Stir to combine.
• Cover crock pot and cook on LOW 4 to 5 hours.
• Set a larger strainer/sieve over a large bowl and pour about 75% of liquid in the crock pot through strainer. You should have about 3 cups to cook the rice in. Add water to get 3 cups if necessary.
• Return all solids to crock pot. Stir in parsley and shrimp. Cover crock pot and cook on LOW 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, bring the 3 cups of liquid to a boil. Stir in rice and cook according to package directions.
• Add cooked rice to slow cooker and mix in. Serve.