You are going to LOVE this red beans and rice in the slow cooker because it is so delicious and easy!
You can make it by throwing all the ingredients in the slow cooker/ crock pot in the morning, and poof! Dinner practically prepares itself.
Note: This post may contain Amazon affiliate links. See my full affiliate disclosure policy here.
Side note: If you prefer to make this traditionally on the stovetop, see my stovetop red beans and rice.
How to make slow cooker red beans and rice
First, gather your ingredients.
Ingredients
For tastiest results, always use the best quality ingredients you have access to. To make this slow cooker red beans and rice recipe, you will need the following:
- onion
- bell pepper
- celery
- garlic
- chicken andouille sausage (or your favorite andouille sausage)
- dry red beans (or red kidney beans work well too)
- salt and pepper
- white pepper (optional – still good without it)
- hot sauce
- thyme – fresh or dried
- bay leaves
- water
- 10 cups cooked rice (prepared just prior to serving)
Assembling this recipe
After you prep/ chop and measure your ingredients, just add them to the slow cooker. Except for the rice! I cook that just prior to serving at meal time.
Slow cooking red beans and rice
So how long does the red bean mixture need to cook? It depends on which setting you use.
On high, it will need to cook for about 6 hours. On low, it will need at least 10 hours. Of course slow cooker can vary a little bit, so it wouldn’t hurt to plan some buffer time. The beans will keep warm for a while if needed, no problem. And if they need extra cook time, make sure the pot is turned to high, and cook a bit longer.
My slow cooker (<- Amazon affiliate link) is one of my most used kitchen appliances. It is SUCH a valuable tool for making really yummy food that is easy to set and forget. Perfect for busy folks! Which, aren’t we ALL?!
Side note: If you want to make this dish quicker (like less than 2 hours, starting with dry beans), check out my Instant Pot red beans and rice recipe!
Serving
Like I mentioned, I cook the rice just ahead of meal time so that it will be ready in time to serve. I have a rice cooker, but you can also prepare it on the stovetop.
Serve with some diced green onion, extra hot sauce if you wish and a side of southern skillet cornbread.
Important cooking tips and notes
PS: You do not have to soak your dried beans ahead of time! Yes, you heard me right. This article from the LA Times explains why.
I did rinse mine, but I did NOT soak them, and this turned out perfect. I use this same method for my slow cooker black bean soup too, and it also is a gem of a recipe.
Note: Since they are not pre-soaked you will need to allow plenty of time to cook. I would suggest at least 10 hours on low, or at least 6 hours on high. This might vary a little if your slow cooker is different than mine.
Update Note: Please make sure your crock pot heats up hot enough to eliminate any potential toxins, as explained here. My crock pot gets very hot, so it works out fine for us to cook them this way. If you are in doubt, go ahead and soak your beans first just to be safe. I do not want anyone to get sick from this recipe!
What type of sausage should I use?
You can use any type of cajun sausage, but I am using Amylu’s chicken andouille sausage that I found at Costco. I had never used this in any recipe before, and I bought it on a whim…as I so often do at Costco! (<- anybody else?? I am a sucker for the sample pushers too.)
You can use any type of andouille or cajun sausage though – pork, chicken or even vegan andouille sausages work great.
More Cajun Recipes You May Enjoy
- Instant Pot Red Beans and Rice – tastes like this version, only quicker!
- Chicken and Sausage jambalaya (one pot recipe)
- Cajun shrimp and grits
More Slow Cooker Recipes You May Enjoy
Tools Used to Make This Recipe
Note: These are Amazon affiliate links.
- Slow cooker
- Knife
- Cutting board
- Bowl (for soaking the beans)
- Strainer (for draining the beans)
- Optional – rice cooker. You can also just prepare the rice on the stovetop, according to package directions.
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Red Beans and Rice in the slow cooker
You are going to LOVE this red beans and rice in the slow cooker because it is so delicious and easy! Throw the ingredients into your slow cooker, and dinner practically prepares itself.
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 bell pepper diced
- 3 celery stalks chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pounds ¼ chicken andouille sausage cut into thin slices, I used Amylu brand
- 1 pound dry red kidney beans
- 1 tsp salt or more to taste
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp white pepper optional
- 1 tsp hot sauce I used Texas Pete
- 1 tsp fresh thyme or ½ tsp dried thyme
- 2 leaves bay
- 7 cups water
- 10 cups cooked rice
Instructions
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Rinse the kidney beans and drain.
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Add all the ingredients (except the rice) to the slow cooker.
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Set the slow cooker to low and cook for either 6 hours on high or 10 hours on low (total).
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Optional: When there is one hour remaining, use a potato masher to go in and mash up some of the beans, then let it cook the remaining hour.
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Cook the rice in a separate pot, according to package directions. I used white jasmine rice and cooked it in my rice cooker.
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Serve with 1 cup rice in each serving.
Recipe Notes
*Nutrition information includes 1 cup cooked rice.
Nutritional information is approximate and was calculated using a recipe nutrition label generator.
Adapted from The Weary Chef.
Update Note: Please make sure your crock pot heats up hot enough to eliminate any potential toxins, as explained here. My crock pot gets very hot, so it works out fine for us to cook them this way. If you are in doubt, go ahead and soak your beans first just to be safe. I do not want anyone to get sick from this recipe!
Fritmama says
Hi, Marjorie!
I made this recipe as meal prep lunches for my boyfriend and I. I played it safe and pre-boiled the beans for 10 minutes. I was silly, however, and did not adjust the amount of water (since the beans were boiled I needed less). after 4.5 hours, the mixture was still quite liquidy.
to fix this, I decided to mix in rice with the other ingredients in the slow cooker, so it would absorb the liquid and some flavor! I did about 1.5 cups of dry rice. this worked perfectly for me, and I think I like it better as a whole mixture, rather than the beans on top of the rice.
thanks for this recipe! I will be making it again.
Bree says
I wish I hadn’t read this comment before making this! With adding in the rice from the beginning, the rice turned into something like a pourage …..and the beans weren’t done yet. I do NOT suggest cooking the rice with the beans. However, i just added more water and continued to cook it until the beans were done. It tasted delicious, but the texture was mushy. I’ll try it again with the rice seperate. The flavor was great. I also added some old bay seasoning.
JESS says
You may notice the previous poster mentioned they added the rice at the end of the cooking time not the start.
Many slow cooker meals have rice added but it’s almost always in the last 30min – 1hr, never for the whole cook.
Michelle says
I just want to know.. if I’m making the recipe for only 4 servings how long should I cook it?
Marjorie @APinchOfHealthy says
Hi Michelle. The same cook time should apply. If the beans are not tender enough to your liking at the end, put the lid back on and cook for another 15 minutes. Hope that helps!
Carolyn says
The toxic compound phytohaemagglutinin, a lectin, is present in many common bean varieties, but is especially concentrated in red kidney beans. White kidney beans contain about a third as much toxin as the red variety; broad beans (Vicia faba) contain 5 to 10% as much as red kidney beans.
Phytohaemagglutinin can be deactivated by boiling beans for ten minutes; the ten minutes at boiling point (100 °C (212 °F)) are sufficient to degrade the toxin, but not to cook the beans. For dry beans, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also recommends an initial soak of at least 5 hours in water, which should then be discarded.
Janet Smith Patterson says
This was so delicious. I’ve made it twice. I used red beans in place of the kidney beans, just a personal preference and added one 15 oz. can of refried beans to thicken it. I did not mash up any of the good red beans!
Marjorie@APinchOfHealthy says
Glad you enjoyed it👏🏻
Sarah Latourette says
Do I need to soak the beans? If so, how long? Or do I just rinse them in a strainer?
Marjorie@APinchOfHealthy says
Hi Sarah! No, this is a no-soak recipe. I just rinse mine in a strainer first.✅👌🏻
Haley says
This might be a dumb question, but do the 7 cups of water go in the crockpot? Or are they for the rice?
Marjorie@APinchOfHealthy says
The 7 cups goes in the crockpot👍🏻
Nate says
Now my go to red beans and rice recipe. They only change I did was add extra liquid smoke, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce at the beginning. Followed by more to taste at the end.
Marjorie@APinchOfHealthy says
So happy to hear that Nate! So much of the flavor depends on the sausage. Adding in a few extras like you mention can get the taste exactly as you like it. 👌🏻
Kate P. says
I’m making this for dinner tonight! I did a quick soak on my beans, do I need to adjust the cooking time?
Marjorie@APinchOfHealthy says
I am sorry I am just now seeing this, and you probably already made it. Hope it turned out okay! Soaking would mean you would need to reduce the cook time and the liquids. I am not sure by how much, but I would say at least a cup less liquid, maybe reduce even more than that.
Deebi27 says
This looks amazing…that’s why I already pinned this earlier this week! Showed pictures and told the hubby the ingredients and he said, “Yes, I just got a new bottle of salsa!” So, it’s obvious you like hot flavored foods…looking through a few recipes! Just how spicy hot is the chicken andouille sausage? I know this is going to be a winner for the hubby and I…not to mention mostly healthy!
Marjorie@APinchOfHealthy says
Ha ha. 🙂 Yes, the spiciness probably depends on the brand. I’ve used Amylu’s, Aidele’s and Trader Joe’s and none of those were too spicy for us. I always add extra hot sauce on mine as well. 😆👌🏻 I hope you enjoy it!
Elizabeth Reichart says
Hello, I was wondering if I could substitute chicken thighs for the chicken andouille sausage?
Marjorie@APinchOfHealthy says
Hi Elizabeth! Thanks for your question. 🙂 I would not recommend that. The chicken andouille sausage provides a lot of flavoring that seasons the whole dish. Any other kind of cajun sausage should work, but not plain chicken thighs, since it tends to be pretty bland on its own.