Our Recipe for Award Winning Gumbo
I have been using this recipe for Award Winning Gumbo for a long time. It actually is a one of the favorite things I cook for the LeFils clan. I did decide to wait to share it for my interview with country music artist Natalie Goodman. I can’t really describe or explain the reason why Natalie goodman felt like family from our very first conversation. It just felt like we knew each other for years. Our first conversation felt like to people catching up from a previous conversation. So in honor of my new found family member, I decided to share this celebrated Award Winning Gumbo recipe. While you are getting ready to cook check out our interview with country music artist Natalie Goodman by clicking here.
Gumbo
Servings: 15 -20
Ingredients
- 6 lbs whole chicken
- 1 lb smoked sausage natural casing
- 2 lbs gulf shrimp
- 3 cloves garlic
- 4 bay leaves
- 6 peppercorns
- 8 whole cloves
- 6 celery stalks, trimmed
- 3 large onions
- 2 large green bell peppers
- 1 lbs cut okra
- 3 whole carrots trimmed and peeled
- 28 oz can diced tomatoes
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 3 tbsp Cajun seasoning
- ¾ lb butter
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 5 cups your favorite cooked rice
Instructions
For the chicken stock:
- In a large pot add the following: the whole chicken covered with cold water about 2 inches above the chicken; 3 celery stalks and the carrots, both halved lengthwise; 6 peppercorns; 1 peeled onion, cut in half. Using the cloves as stick pins, attache a Bay leaf to each onion half.
- After 4 hours of cook time use a ladle and skim the thin lay of rendered chicken fat that has floated to the top. (Reserve the chicken fat in a separate bowl and use to coat your cooked rice.) Simmer the chicken mixture for an additional 2 hours or until chicken is cooked through completely. Discard the vegetables and spices, reserving the chicken and the stock. Place chicken on a large plate to cool.
Preparing the Roux:
- In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. When butter is melted, whisk in the flour. Continue whisking and cooking on medium heat until the flour looks like milk chocolate and smells like popcorn. Remove from heat.
Putting the Gumbo all together:
- Once the chicken has cooled, remove the bones and cut into bite size pieces. Slice the sausage into 1/2 inch pieces. Dice the remaining onions, celery and bell peppers. Finely dice the garlic.
- Over medium heat, in a large Dutch oven, cook the sausage pieces until nicely browned. Remove sausage from pan and set aside. Next, add the onions, celery, bell peppers, okra, garlic and remaining Bay leaves. Saute until fragrant and the edges of the onion begin to look clear. Add the diced and crushed tomatoes and 6 cups of the reserved chicken stock, Cajun spices, salt and pepper. Bring to a slight boil, then reduce to simmer.
- In a medium bowl, add 1/2 cup roux and 1 cup Gumbo mixture (from Dutch oven). Mix well. Pour into Dutch oven, stirring and simmering. Repeat this process until desired thickness is achieved. Add shrimp to Dutch oven, cook for 2 minutes, or until shrimp is pink and firm. Add chicken and sausage. Stir well. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- Serve with rice and cornbread.
Notes
If you want to use frozen okra, do not add until the end.
