A chef friend once recounted the story of his Grandaddy from Louisiana, who was interviewed in the 1950s for his gumbo recipe. The journalist asked, "How long do you cook your gumbo?", to which he responded, "Hmm... 'bout 3 beers." Now you know 2 secrets to making an amazing gumbo - homemade Andouille sausage, and a cooking time that equals the length of time it takes you to nurse 3 beers.
8
0:45
2:15
• 4 chicken legs
• ¼ cup vegetable oil + 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 onions, diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 2 green bell peppers, diced
• 10 cloves garlic, minced
• ¾ lb. okra, sliced
• 4 sprigs thyme, destemmed and chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 can (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes
• 1 qt. chicken stock
• 1 lb. Andouille, sliced
• 4 cups cooked rice
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Chives, chopped, for garnish
• Italian parsley, for garnish
• Louisiana-style hot sauce, for garnish
Place a Dutch oven on the stove on medium-high heat. Add the vegetable oil, then add the chicken legs. Season with salt and pepper. Cook the chicken legs, flipping once, until browned on both sides. Remove the chicken legs and allow to rest.
Now, let's make a roux. Turn the heat on the stove down to medium, and in the same Dutch oven, add the flour and oil to the chicken grease, and season with salt and pepper. Whisk constantly, until the flour / oil mixture turns a deep shade of brown, about 20 minutes.
Add the onions, carrots, celery, green bell peppers, thyme, and bay leaves, stirring occasionally, and cook for 4 minutes. Add the garlic and tomatoes, stirring occasionally, and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the chicken stock to the Dutch oven. Stir the ingredients together. Place the 4 chicken legs in the stock mixture, and ensure they are completely covered. Add the Andouille. Once boiling, turn the heat down to allow the mixture to simmer. Cover, and simmer for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
In a skillet, heat 2 tbsp. oil. Add the okra and sprinkle with salt. Sauté the okra for about 8 minutes, until they're just starting to brown.
Prepare the rice according to package directions.
Remove the chicken legs. Shred the chicken legs using tongs and a fork, so that the leg meat is shredded into long strands. Add the okra and the shredded chicken to the gumbo. Stir together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Spoon rice into a bowl. Ladle the gumbo over top a bed of rice. Garnish with chives and parsley, and serve with a side of Louisiana-style hot sauce.