Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

[lovemelikesunday]

 Gumbo is something that I’ve been making for quite a while now and is one of the few things I don’t need any form of a recipe to make. Cajun cooking tends to be pretty flexible and that’s especially true for gumbo.  It’s always been a “whatever you have on hand” kind of a thing and I’m pretty sure nothing has ever actually been measured when making this recipe.  Despite that, the other day I managed to make the best batch yet.  There were some experimental changes made during cooking, but I have no idea which one made the biggest difference.

I used some bacon drippings and changed the cooking method when making the roux.  We usually save the drippings anyway, but the idea of using it for this purpose has made me want to make bacon 100% more often.  It’s a good idea to sieve out any solids when saving.  The other change is that there was some chicken bone broth hanging out in the pantry with no purpose, so that got added in.  Regular stock would probably do just as well.  While cooking, I realized that I usually forget to add the garlic in as well.  We didn’t have any fresh, so I added an unspecified amount of garlic powder.

First, you make a roux.  For the first time ever, I made the roux in the oven.  It’s not energy or time efficient compared to the stove top method, unless you consider that it’s very hands off and while the roux is cooking you can get other things done.  Like washing dishes or video games.  Or both.  Almost anything other than getting splashed by by Cajun napalm and having to grit through it.

Preheat oven to 350F.  In a large cast iron skillet (I used the enameled dutch oven I planned on cooking the gumbo in) whisk together until a paste forms

½ cup olive oil
¼ cup bacon drippings
1 cup all purpose flour

Place the skillet in the oven and bake for 90-120 minutes, stirring every 30 minutes.  Once the roux is to the desired darkness, place on stove top and add in

1 large onion, chopped
1-2 bell peppers, chopped
3-4 stalks of celery, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced

Add

1 ½ gallons water
Optional: sub some of the water with chicken stock
3 tablespoons Slap Ya Mama Cajun seasoning

Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for about an hour.  Add

Meat from one rotisserie chicken, picked clean
1 pack sausage
Optional: 1 pack Andouille (we usually omit depending on availability of preferred brands)

You can brown the sausage before adding it to the gumbo for additional flavor, but it isn’t necessary.  Add additional seasoning to taste.  Additional water may need to be added depending on how much as boiled off.  Let cook for another 45-60 minutes.

Serve over white rice.

Sorry for the lack of pictures!  Maybe if I'd known how good it would turn out ...

I almost forgot to crosspost from my Pillowfort.