Yankee Wife’s Gumbo
My husband was born and raised in the South. I, to put it mildly, was not. He doesn’t miss much about Texas and Louisiana-as he puts it, he’s from the South–but after family and friends, food almost certainly tops the list. I know better than to try to replicate real barbecue, and I can’t bring myself to fry a chicken. But with a little research and experimentation, I’ve managed to satisfy his gumbo cravings. It’s not entirely authentic, no, but it’s quicker and healthier. And when my mother-in-law visited last weekend, she called it delicious. That’s good enough for me.
The trickiest thing about making gumbo and making it healthier is the roux. This oil-and-flour mixture must be cooked at low heat for a half-hour or more, to “peanut butter color” and just to the edge of burning. One speck of black, and you have to start over. Traditional roux is made of equal parts oil and flour, half a cup of each in many recipes. Here’s a secret, though: the flavor and thickening power of the roux both come from the browned flour. The oil enhaces the flavor, of course, and helps everything blend together more easily. But you don’t need much to make a delicious gumbo.
A few other changes: I tracked down lighter chicken andouille sausage instead of traditional pork. Real gumbo uses bone-in chicken, especially the dark meat. I went with chunks of skinless, boneless chicken breast to save both time and fat. You could also use whatever leftover cooked poultry you have on hand.
Cheater’s Gumbo
- Cooking spray
- 1/3 C flour
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 small onion, minced
- 2 stalks celery, minced
- 1 small bell pepper, minced (I skip this due to Texas Husband’s preference)
- 6 C low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 (14-oz) can petite-diced tomatoes
- 2 C sliced okra (I use frozen)
- 8 oz smallish raw shrimp/prawns, shell-on (no big deal if they’re pre-shelled, but the shells add flavor and authenticity)
- 10 oz boneless/skinless chicken breast, raw or leftover
- 1 link chicken andouille sausage (available at Whole Foods and occasionally my neighborhood Safeway) or 1 hot link
- 2 tsp gumbo file’ (available in the spice aisle at most grocery stores)
- Cooked rice
- In a large pot at medium heat, cook onions, celery and peppers in a little cooking spray. If using raw chicken, brown it a bit but don’t worry if it doesn’t get cooked all the way through. Remove from the pot and set aside
- Heat oil in the same pot. Add flour and blend it in as well as you can, breaking up any lumps. Stir frequently so the flour browns evenly. Be careful–you can go from “golden” to “burnt” very quickly and your goal is a medium “peanut butter” brown.
- Add the chicken broth 1/4 C or less at a time, blending thoroughly after each addition, to prevent lumps. The first round will have the consistency of paste; be patient and you’ll be rewarded with a nice smooth soup. Once it’s thinned out to the consistency of honey, you can add the rest of the broth all at once.
- Put the onions, celery and peppers back in the pot along with the tomatoes, okra and chicken. Add the andouille sausage if it’s not already cooked. Bring to a boil.
- When the sausage is cooked through, slice it from end to end and then into small half-moons. Dump the pieces back in the pot along with any juices.
- Add the shrimp and continue to simmer until the shrimp are curled and cooked through and the vegetables are very soft. Turn off the heat and stir in the gumbo file’.
- Serve hot over rice.
~Liss
P.S. Stay tuned: El’s back from vacation, Liss is done with five-count’em-five family visits plus the plague, fall is coming and we’re back to cooking. And posting. We promise.
