Gumbo, True Cajun Recipe
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Category: |
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Ingredients: |
Ingredients: 1 whole chicken ( uncooked or rotisserie if in a hurry)
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup oil
1 cup each, chopped bell pepper, celery & onion ( or equivalent of the frozen seasoning blend)
7-8 cups of chicken broth (make your broth if using uncooked chicken)
4 bay leaves , or 2 teaspoons crushed basil (optional)
Tony's or your favorite Cajun seasoning mix, to taste (or see the seasoning mix for Étouffée )
1/2 teaspoon each ground black pepper, & cayenne pepper (Add this only if you like spicy. Tony's is spicy by itself so be careful and taste if you are using it. If you use seasoning mix for Etouffe'e omit this pepper)
2 packages of frozen gumbo vegetables ( this is corn, okra & red bell pepper blend. Can buy vegetables individually and put as much as you like. I usually do at least 2 cups each corn and okra, and 1 cup of bell pepper)
File' to taste
Cooked rice
1½ lb Smoked rope/link sausage (optional)
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Directions: |
Directions:Rub chicken with Tony's or cajun seasoning mix. Put in a large cooking pot and cover with water. Add bay leaves. Cook till it falls off the bone. Remove chicken and allow to cool and debone and shred meat. Defat the broth and put back in the pot to use for the gumbo. If necessary add enough canned broth to make about 7-8 cups. Chop vegetables and have them close to the stove ready to cool down the roux.
THE ROUX: Heat the 3/4 cup oil until it's beginning to smoke then slowly stir in the 1 cup flour. Continually stir until it is very dark brown/chocolate color and just beginning to smell burnt. It's best to use a gumbo mixing paddle or a wooden spatula with a wide flat end to stir the roux. This allows you to make wide sweeps in the roux keeping the flour moving on the floor of the pan to evenly brown and not allow any of it to stick and burn. (If you start seeing large black burned clumps of flour you may as well toss the roux and start over. It will have a bitter taste if the flour burns). As the roux gets to the dark chocolate color and starts smelling burnt (without the black flakes) turn the stove off and add the chopped vegetables (onion,pepper, celery), stirring to allow them to cook till slightly tender. Add enough hot broth to the roux to make it easy to pour. Add the roux and chopped vegetable mixture to the broth.
Add seasoning to taste and stir. Add meat and gumbo vegetables. Continue to simmer on lowest heat (30min to 1 hour) to allow flavors to mix. If you like a thinner gumbo add more broth or water. You can also add a couple teaspoons of file' now or you can allow each person to add their own. Serve over rice. |
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Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: The trick to flavorful gumbo is getting the roux dark. The bought stuff in a jar is not worth it. Roux is just a matter of browning flour without burning it. Continual stirring with a paddle is key. Making it in a 10in. cast iron skillet is best. Be carful not to splatter...remember it's hot oil and it blisters.
If you want to add sausage, I precook the sausage in a little water in a skillet to get out any extra grease. I cut the sausage ropes in bite size slices and put in the gumbo . You can also make this a seafood gumbo.Have plenty of hot sauce and File' on the table. Serve withTexas Toast or crackers.
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