Instant Pot Jambalaya
Instant Pot Jambalaya is a quick cajun recipe with spicy andouille sausage, chicken, shrimp, and rice pressure cooked in onions, celery, peppers, garlic, tomatoes, and creole seasonings. My family was shocked to love this recipe. I was hoping I could have it all to myself. Jambalaya will definitely be a regular weeknight dinner.
The even better part of this Instant Pot Jambalaya is that is all made in one single pot. Fewer dishes to wash is always a win on a busy weeknight. Plus this recipe is cooked in under 30 minutes.
Jambalaya Ingredients
The ingredients you need for Jambalaya are the basics in many cajun foods. If you are a lover of creole or cajun cuisine, then a lot of these ingredients should be basics in your fridge and pantry. Get these ingredients for the Jambalaya.
- Andouille Sausage
- Boneless chicken breasts or thighs
- Shrimp – deveined, peeled, and tails-off
- Long-Grain Rice
– white or brown - Onions, green and white
- Celery
- Garlic
- Bell or Poblano Peppers
- Tomatoes
- Canned Tomatoes – Fire-roasted adds more flavor
- Chicken Better than Bouillon
- Creole Seasoning
– white or brown
– Fire-roasted adds more flavor
In addition to these ingredients, you will need water as well. Salt and pepper are always on hand to doctor the flavor as well.
How to Make Jambalaya in the Instant Pot
To begin making Jambalaya, start chopping. Chop the onions, celery, peppers, tomatoes, and garlic. Slice up the andouille sausage and cube the chicken. Season the chicken and shrimp with the creole seasoning. This will help make the entire process go faster. This all can be done ahead of time as well to save time.
Then to start making it in the Instant Pot, turn the IP on saute and add olive oil to the bottom of the pan. Then add the diced celery, onions, and garlic to the pot. Follow those vegetables up with the diced peppers. Let saute for a few minutes until the pepper and onions just start to caramelize or soften.
Next, add the cubed chicken and andouille sausage into the Instant Pot with the vegetables. Cook the meat until the chicken is browned on all the edges. Then stir the rice into the mixture along with the fresh tomatoes and canned tomatoes.
Stir in the Better than Bouillon and creole seasoning into the mixture and then add the water to the mixture.
Place the lid onto the Instant Pot, lock it in place. Hit cancel on the IP, then turn it back on to manual. Set for 8 minutes on low pressure. Then hit start. When the time is over, let the Instant Pot set, naturally releasing for 5 minutes before releasing pressure. Remove the lid and then stir the shrimp into the mixture. Place the lid back on and let sit for another 5 minutes.
Stir the mixture again making sure the shrimp is now pink and fully cooked. The Instant Pot Jambalaya is now ready.
Serve the Jambalaya on a plate or in a bowl depending on how soupy it is. Also, garnish with green onion.
Tips for Making Instant Pot Jambalaya
- I used an 8-quart Instant Pot Ultra for this recipe.
- The high setting may cause the burn warning with the tomatoes mixed in. Low works better for me. If you don’t have a pressure cooker that allows you to adjust high or low, just power the tomatoes over the top and don’t mix them in to avoid the burn warning.
- If you like spicy food, use the poblano peppers instead of the bell peppers. Also, add 1 more teaspoon of creole seasoning.
- If you want a soupier Jambalaya you can add more water to the mixture after it has cooked.
- You can also saute the shrimp to cook it while the rest is under pressure to speed up the cooking process.
for this recipe.
Cajun Recipes
Grilled Shrimp and Smoked Sausage Skewers
Cajun Chicken and Smoked Sausage Pasta
Cajun Pork Burgers with Shrimp and Spicy Aioli
Slow Cooker Cajun Red Beans and Rice – Whatcha Crockin’ – Week 32
Instant Pot Jambalaya
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 16 ounce Andouille Sausage
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 pound shrimp, deveined, peeled, tail-off
- 1 bell pepper
- 3 stalks celery
- 1 onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 roma tomatoes
- 1½ cup long grain rice
- 1 can fire-roasted tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon Chicken Better than Bouillon
- 3 cups water
- 3 teaspoons Creole or Cajun Seasoning
- 2 green onions
Instructions
- Chop up all the vegetables and turn the Instant Pot to saute. Put olive oil in the IP pan and add the white onions, celery, peppers, and garlic to the pot.
- Slice the sausage, cube the chicken, and peel or detail the shrimp if need be. Season the chicken and shrimp with one teaspoon of creole or cajun seasoning a piece. Then add the sausage and chicken to the pot.
- Cook until the chicken is brown on all sides. Then stir in the seasoning, rice, and Better than Bouillon. Dump the canned tomatoes and fresh tomatoes into the pot. Add the water to the pot.
- Cancel the saute setting and then restart to manual. Set the IP for 8 minutes on low-pressure. Let natural release for 5 minutes before releasing the rest of the pressure. Stir the shrimp into the mixture and let sit another five minutes.
- Garnish with green onions.
Nutrition
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