Name: Crockpot Loaded Jambalaya
Ingredients: ¾ lb skinned and boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces; ¾ lb skinned and boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces; 1 tsp salt; ⅛ tsp black pepper; ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 large onion, chopped (about 2 cups); 1 large green pepper, chopped; 2 celery ribs, chopped; 4 cloves garlic, minced; 1 (14½ oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained; ½ lb fully cooked ham, cut into ½-inch pieces; 1 (14 oz) can chicken broth; 2 (3½ oz) bags boil-in-bag rice; 1 lb unpeeled medium raw shrimp; ½ cup chopped green onions; 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley; 1 tbsp hot sauce (like Frank's or Tabasco)

Why it works: Onion and garlic match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 29,058 recipes. Both carry furaneol, which smells caramel, strawberry. The science ↓

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29,058 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Garlic + tomatotop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together14,076 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Celery + tomatotop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,377 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together17,451 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Pepper + celerytop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together16,012 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Chicken thighs: Stay moist and tender through the long slow cook, adding rich flavor.
Chicken breasts: Provide lean protein that firms up as the dish cooks.
Diced tomatoes: Add acidity and liquid that build the sauce around the rice.
Shrimp: Add delicate seafood texture that firms as it cooks through.
Boil-in-bag rice: Absorbs the cooking liquid and gives the dish its body.
Onion: Adds sweetness and savory depth as it softens in the skillet.

The step that matters

Adding the shrimp at the end. Shrimp cook quickly, and extra time on high heat tightens their proteins, making them rubbery. Check for pink color and stop once they are just opaque.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, pepper, onion, celery, garlic, tomato, ham):

Thymefits better
Parsleyfits better
Basilfits better
Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, pepper, onion, celery, garlic, tomato, ham. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Pork	100g cooked	242
Rice	1 cup cooked (158g) white	206
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Shrimp	100g cooked	99
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Celery	1 stalk (40g)	6
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Crockpot Loaded Jambalaya