serves 6 to 8
I stumbled on this recipe browsing through NYT Cooking. They say it takes 1hr 30min to make, but it took me more like 2+ hours. I started leisurely getting into the cooking mode at some point after 5pm and we didn’t eat until almost 8pm. I’m sure I could streamline this a tad more, but I will say that it took a loooong time for the roux to turn to a nice golden brown. I think I spent over 20 minutes at this stage. That being said, it was absolutely delicious and the 3 of us got two dinners and 1 lunch out of it.
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs ← recipe just says 3-to-4 pounds of chicken parts, but I love thighs for this
- salt to taste
- 1 tsp finely ground black pepper
- 1¼ tsp finely ground white pepper ← I was out so substituted an additional ¾ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp powdered mustard
- 1½ tsp cayenne pepper
- 1½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp granulated garlic
- [optional] 1 tsp file powder ← I was out, so I skipped
- 1½ cups flour
- 2½ cups corn, peanut or vegetable oil ← I used vegetable
- ¾ cup finely chopped onion (about ½ onion)
- ¾ cup finely chopped celery (about 4 stalks)
- ¾ cup finely chopped green pepper (about ½ pepper)
- 9 cups chicken broth ← I use Better Than Bouillon Premium Roasted Chicken Base
- 1⅓ cups thinly sliced (diagonally) andouille sausage ← this is less than 4 sausages; I added all 4 in the 4 pack. I added another 4-pack for dinner #2 (pan fried them before adding to gumbo)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp finely minced fresh garlic
- 2 cups cooked rice
Instructions
- Put chicken pieces in a bowl and season with salt to taste (may be easier to eye-ball if you salt before putting chicken in bowl)
- In a small bowl, blend black pepper, white pepper, mustard, cayenne pepper, paprika, granulated garlic and file powder
- Rub four teaspoons of the mixture over the chicken and set the rest of spice mixture aside
- Put the flour in a bowl and add two teaspoons of the reserved spice mixture. Blend well.
- Heat a 10-inch skillet and add the oil.
- Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour mixture to coat well, shaking off excess. Reserve the leftover flour.
- When the oil is hot and almost smoking, add the chicken pieces skin side down. Cook about two minutes on one side until golden brown. Turn and cook about three minutes on the second side until nicely browned. Do this in batches so as to not crowd the pan. Drain thoroughly on paper towels on wire rack.
- Time tip: start warming up the broth NOW! Just keep it on low to get to a slow boil since you have about 15-20 minutes of roux stirring to do next.
- Pour off all but one cup of fat from the skillet. Heat this oil over high heat until it is almost smoking and add the reserved seasoned flour. Stir rapidly and constantly with a wire whisk until the mixture is golden brown. Do not burn. This is a roux. ← this step takes at least 15-20 minutes so make sure you have a glass of wine handy since you can’t take a break from stirring!
- Add the chopped onion, celery and green pepper to the roux and stir to blend well. Remove from the heat.
- Meanwhile, bring the broth to a boil in a large saucepan.
- Add about half a cup of the roux mixture to the broth, stirring rapidly with the whisk. Continue adding the roux mixture, half a cup at a time, always stirring rapidly and constantly.
- Add the smoked sausage and stir. Cook over high heat, stirring often from the bottom, about 15 minutes. ← the roux is flour based so will start to stick (and burn) easily to bottom of pan
- Add the chicken pieces, bay leaf and finely minced fresh garlic. Cook about 40 minutes, on medium-low, stirring occasionally.
- Remove the chicken pieces. Cut the meat from the bones and discard the bones. Cut the chicken into cubes or shred it and add it back to the pot. ← I just quickly take the skin off the chicken thighs before serving and give everyone a knife to fend for themselves.
- Serve with white rice or potato salad (or both) spooned into the gumbo.