Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

By Cap'n Ron
Published: October 24, 2013
Prep time: 60 Min    Cook time: 120 Min    Total time: 180 Min
Yield: 12 - 16 servings

This Gumbo is AMAZING, so full of flavor. It's a great thing to cook on a lazy Sunday afternoon, and it's well worth the effort.

What is a Gumbo? It's a stew, silly! Nothing fancier than that, and it'll take anything you want to put in it. Stews are nothing more than local regional foods, that are usually cooked in one pot or pan. Spain has Paella, Poland has Bigos, there's Shepherd's pie in the UK, South Carolina has a Low Country Boil, the list goes on and on. So even though, I've never been to New Orleans, this is something that I've been wanting to make for a long time.

So, how do I know it's so good? I've got a buddy that recently spent a week in New Orleans, and I was able to get some of this over to him. He went crazy over it. It's got just enough heat, and plenty of flavor.

And, I DID have my screw-ups. I accidentally purchased skinless thighs, not boneless and skinless. So I had to bone them myself, and I found that even with the waste, I weighed the trimmings, it ended up less expensive than buying them already boned.

The other thing I did was after I added the chicken to the pot, I realized that I had an appointment that I needed to keep. I let the chicken cook for about 10 minutes, then turned the heat off, and covered it. When I returned 2 hours later, the chicken was perfectly done, and not falling apart. I was cooking on an electric stove, and used a very heavy pot. The electric stove takes a long time to cool down, especially when the pot retains so much heat for so long. Anyway it worked out terrific.

Now, why did I cook so much? It's tough to cook for one or two people without eating the same thing over and over for the next week. In this case, this is a great freezable meal. I even made extra Garlic Bread, and froze that too.

You could very easily add shrimp and/or scallops to this to turn it into a Seafood Gumbo. Heat to gumbo over low heat until it's just beginning to bubble, Add the scallops, let cook for 10 minutes, then add the shrimp, and cook them until they're done, about 5 minutes, or so. OR, you could also blacken the shrimp and scallops in a fry pan, then add them to the Gumbo once it's served.

1.    It's a lot easier to cook when you've got all of your ingredients together. I use a large cutting board, and have placed them behind it. Of course both the chicken and sausage are still in the refrigerator.

2.    The Roux:
Place the oil into a large pot (I'm using an 8 quart, heavy bottomed pot) that will hold all of the finished product. Turn the heat to medium, then add 1 1/2 cups flour and stir it into the oil, until it looks like a paste. If it's not fairly thick, just add more of the flour.

As it begins to bubble, turn the heat down to medium low. Cook, stirring real often, until the Roux is a nice chocolate color. Keep an eye on it, and if it's cooking too fast, turn the heat down. As the Roux begins to darken, it'll also thicken up. So, be ready to add a little more oil. Total cooking time for the Roux is 10 - 15 minutes, it all depends upon how thick it is, and how high a temperature your cooking at.

Ron's Note:
Be careful that you're not cooking at so high a temperature, or that you don't stir it often enough, because you might end up burning the Roux. If it begins to smell burnt, instead of nutty, there's no fixin' it, and you'll have to start over.

3.    I like working right next to the stove, so I can keep an eye on whatever's cooking, and still keep working. In this case, I chopped the veggies, and placed them in a bowl to hold until I was ready for them.

Once the roux has turned a nice chocolate brown, add the vegetables, and enough extra oil to keep it all from burning. Mix them up well, place a lid on the pot, and let it cook for about 10 minutes, stirring once or twice. Cook until the vegetables begin to soften.

4.    Once the vegetables are soft, add the chicken broth a cup, or so, at a time. Stir in well, then add more until you got a soup that about the consistency of a thick soup like corn chowder. Turn the heat up to medium high, and as it just begins to bubble, turn it down to low, so as not to burn it.

5.    Add all of the spices, plus the Chipotles chopped up and their sauce. Stir it all in.

6.    While the Gumbo is heating, it's time to cut up the sausage, and brown them. I cut these roughly into 1/2" to 3/4" slices. at this size, they're large enough to hold together, and small enough to eat in just one bite.

7.    I browned them in a Teflon pan with about 1 tablespoon of oil to start them off over medium heat. As they're done, browning, just add them to the pot.

Let these simmer in the pot for about 45 minutes, which gives you plenty of time to prep the chicken.

8.    On to the Chicken:
Mix up the rub in a small bowl, and set it aside.

9.    I inadvertently bough skinless thighs, but with the bones. So, first I used a very sharp paring knife to bone each piece.

Cut each thigh into quarters. The larger pieces of chicken tend to hold together better.

Place them in a bowl, and coat them with the rub. I used the same pan to cook them in along with any fat that was left over from the sausage. Cook over medium heat until they begin to brown, but not burn.

Ron's Note:
Be sure to sanitize the Cutting Board, Knives, and your Hands immediately after working with raw chicken.

10.    After the sausage had cooked about 45 minutes, I added all of the partially cooked chicken. Let this whole thing cook for another 30 45 minutes, Or, until the chicken is done.

Check for salt and pepper, add a little water to thin it some more, then add File' powder to the pot and stir it in. The File' adds a mild flavor, and tightens up this Gumbo.

11.    To Serve:
Serve over, or along side white rice, and garnish with sliced scallions and parsley. Oh, and don't forget to serve your favorite hot sauce along with it.

This recipe prints as a shortened version, with only 1 Picture, Ingredients, and Directions.




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