My local box of produce over the past couple of weeks has gifted me with a bounty of red potatoes that I can't bare to let go to waste! My mother asked me a couple weeks back about this recipe that I had put together a couple of years back now. With my brother not being a seafood eater and my dad being mildly allergic to shellfish, she wanted to put together a Low Country Boil that omitted the shrimp or crawfish. Being as I'm not a seafood fan either, I had tried my hand at a seafood-free low country boil, like I said though, this was a couple of summers ago.
So with an idea in mind and plenty of red potatoes to go around, I got to work on my Low Country Chicken Boil once again. Here among the southern states, summer time is when everyone starts to have crawfish boils! It's always sounded amazing to me; sausage, potatoes, corn - who wouldn't like it? Well, me! If you haven't noticed yet, I'm not a seafood eater. I wish that I could be, but it just isn't a possibility. Sadly.
I know there's probably a few southerners out there that are losing their mind over this seafood-free version. Don't worry though! If you ARE a seafood fan, by all means, feel free to swap and or all of the chicken here for your shrimp, crawfish, what-have-you. Pound for pound. No sweat.
Like I said, I really wish that I could bring myself to enjoy seafood. It isn't that there is an allergy, or a taste issue, none of that. It's just that I don't like seafood for some unknown reason in my head. Yep! I'm a weird one! It's always been that way too. For as long as I can possibly remember. Even after spending a majority of my youth growing up on the Oregon coast. My little brother is the same exact way, so my guess is that we should blame our parents for our dislike of seafood. Haha.
I ended up serving this with a bit of day old poblano and polenta bread that I got from a local farmer's market, and used that to soak up the juices at the bottom of the bowl. Because... yum. This is a very meat-and-potatoes sort of meal. So I think next time I will pair it with a nice light ranch salad on the side.
And did you see the whole 1/4 cup of seasoning in there? Let me just say that it makes one spicy pot. So if you're mouth isn't attuned to the south, is more on the sensitive side, or new to cajun seasoning, I would definitely suggest halving the cajun spice here. You can always add more in as you go, but you can't take it out once it's there!
Healthified Crockpot Low Country Chicken Boil
TheSkinnyFork.com
The Skinny:
Servings: 8 • Size: About 2 Cups • Calories: 370.5 • Fat: 9.7 g • Saturated Fat: 1.5 • Carb: 31.8 g • Fiber: 4.8 g • Protein: 37.8 g • Sugar: 4.7 g • Sodium: 1,350.3 mg (Varies on seasoning.)
Ingredients:
2 Lb. Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, Cubed into 2-3" Pieces
1 1/2 Lbs. Red Potatoes, Halved or Quartered
1 Lb. Turkey Kielbasa Style Sausage (I used a local smoked german sausage.)
5 C. Water
4 Cobs of Fresh Corn, Cut into 3" Segments
1 Bottle of Beer (I used a local amber ale.)
1 Onion, Quartered
2 Lemons, Halved
2 Celery Stalks, Cut into 2-3" Pieces
2 Tbsp. - 1/4 C. Cajun Seasoning (Reduced Sodium or Salt-Free)
3-4 Garlic Cloves, Minced
Salt & Pepper to Taste
Directions:
Place the 1 bottle of beer, 5 C. water, 3-4 minced garlic cloves, and 1/4 C. of cajun seasoning into the bottom of a slow cooker and mix it well to combine.
Add in the 2 Lb. Cubed Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, 1 1/2 Lbs. Red Potatoes, 1 Lb. Kielbasa Style Sausage, 4 Cobs of Fresh Corn, 1 Onion, 2 Lemons, and 2 Celery Stalks.
Cover and cook on high for 4-6 hours or on low for 6-8 hours.
Once done, remove the lid and serve right away!
I served mine with a poblano polenta bread that I got from my local farmer's market to soak up that yummy juice at the bottom of my bowl!
