Can some one in the US give me a recipe for gumbo?

Question

Could someone give me their favourite recipe for gumbo with chicken and stuff
ps what is that stuff you put on top
sassafras ??????

Answer 1

There are so many types of gumbo that to find just one is very hard here is one that I like but there are other types of gumbo. Try this one and if you don't like it try another you can put oysters, alligator, duck, goose, lobster the ingredients are only limited to your imagination. Here is a link to Emeril's web site; foodnetwork.com/food/emeril_lagasse/article/
Gumbo Recipe
Ingredients 3 Bell Peppers
5 sticks Celery
2 lb. Okra
2 lb. Raw Shrimp with shells
26 oz. Whole peeled Tomatoes
1 Carrot
5 Bay Leaves
4 tsp. Thyme
1 Tbs. Red chili
Salt and Pepper
3 Onions
5 Cloves Garlic
1 Chicken
1 lb. Sausage
2 bunches green Onions
3 large Crab legs or equivalent parts
1 Tbs. Basil and/or Oregano
1 Tbs. Cumin
1 tsp. Cayenne Pepper Louisiana hot sauce
Day before:
Put chicken in pressure cooker with 1 stick celery, 1 carrot, and 1 onion; add enough water to cover chicken and cook 20 minutes. Remove from stove and let cool by itself. When cooled, remove chicken; strain liquid through cheesecloth, then place both chicken and stock in refrigerator. Shell the shrimp and crabs. Boil both of the shells for at least 1 hour in enough water to cover them twice over. While shells are boiling, devein the shrimp. Strain crab/shrimp water through cheesecloth. Place shrimp and crab meat along with shrimp/crab water, in refrigerator.
Day of:
Debone chicken. Cut up bell peppers, onions, celery, and garlic. Skim the fat from the top of the chicken stock. Using 3 Tbs. Chicken fat and 2-3 tbs. flour, make enough roux (a.k.a. Cajun napalm) to coat the vegetables. I use a Teflon frying pan for this to reduce the chance of the roux sticking and burning. You can’t use the Teflon at as high of a temperature as cast iron, so it will take a little longer. Use a wooden spoon and stir it constantly with a smashing motion to rid the lumps. The roux should be black (not burned, there is a difference), but better to settle for dark brown till you develop your technique. When the roux has reached the proper color, add the cutup vegetables into the roux and sauté for 5 to 10 minutes. Again, don’t let the roux stick to pan. Put the roux and vegetables into a 10 quart cooking pot along with the stock from the chicken, crab, and shrimp and start it simmering. Now fry the okra to deslime it. The Teflon pan will do well for this also. Using a little oil to coat the okra, stir frequently till the slime disappears. Add the okra to the 10 quart pot. Cutup the sausage, and if you prefer the tomatoes as well then add it to the pot. Add the seasoning and let simmer for at least 2 hours. Add enough water to cover everything but keep in mind, you still have other ingredients to add. So not too full at this time. Gumbo is known for being very spicy, but the amount of cayenne pepper and Louisiana hot sauce I’ve left up to individual taste. I also gave the minimum measure of basil, and thyme. I always add more thyme, basil, cayenne and Louisiana hot sauce and some times I’ll add Oregano since I like it. About ten minutes before serving, add the crab, shrimp, and green onions. Then add water to 1 inch below the top. Bring back to a simmer before serving. Serve over rice.
Some people use sassafras and some use fil'e it is a matter of taste I don't care for either so I omit them.

Answer 2

Well, I don't know what you mean on sprinkling things on top... File, a powder made from sassafras is cooked in with some gumbo recipes as a thickner (like when you don't have okra or a good roux), but it is cooked with it. All I've ever seen it served with is over rice with a cold beer on the side. ;) Or Sazerac. Here's the original recipe for that, if you are interested:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_25473,00.html

This is a great recipe using chicken. You can always use less chicken and add in some deveined/peeled shrimp or crawfish meat. Some put tomato in it, but that is more if you are just in the city (New Orleans). This is the real deal here, no mass produced taste sorta like. Very tasty.

My favorite Cajun seasoning is Slap Ya Mamma, but Tony Chachere's is quite good and easier to find. Also, and this is more personal than traditional, I like to add a bit of Tiger Sauce at the table. TryMe is the brand I get on that.

Good luck and happy eating!

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2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 red bell peppers, diced
2 green bell peppers, diced
2 medium yellow onions, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
5 quarts chicken stock, heated
2 tablespoons Creole Seasoning
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon thyme
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 pound andouille sausage, sliced 1/2-inch thick
1 whole 4-pound chicken, roasted and deboned, cut into 2-inch pieces
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1. First you make a roux. Melt the butter in a 12-quart stockpot. Whisk in the flour and cook until foaming. Cook, stirring often, until dark mahogany, about 1 hour. You can do it lighter, as some prefer, but the depth and color of the gumbo won't be the same. If you burn it, you have to start over, period.

2. Add the peppers, onion, and celery. Cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the chicken stock (make sure it’s hot), and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer. Stir in Creole Seasoning, black pepper, crushed red pepper, chili powder, thyme, chopped garlic, bay leaves, and kosher salt. Cook, skimming fat as necessary, an additional 45 minutes.

3. Add the andouille and chicken and cook for approximately 15 minutes. Taste, and adjust for seasoning. Serve over cooked white rice.

Makes 6 quarts.

Answer 3

Slow Cooker Gumbo Recipe

A gumbo recipe for the crockpot.

INGREDIENTS:
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup cooking oil
3 cups chicken broth
12 to 16 ounces smoked sausage, sliced about 1/2" thick
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
2 cups diced cooked chicken
1 to 2 cups sliced okra
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped celery
4 cloves garlic, minced
salt, to taste
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
boiled white rice

PREPARATION:

For roux, in a heavy 2-quart saucepan stir together flour and oil until smooth. Cook over medium-high heat for 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, for about 15 minutes more or until roux is dark reddish brown.

Let roux cool.
Add chicken broth to a 3 1/2 to 6-quart slow cooker. Stir in roux. Add sausage, chicken, okra, onion, green pepper, celery, garlic, salt, pepper, and red pepper. Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours, or HIGH for 4 to 5 hours.
Skim off fat. Serve with hot cooked rice.

Makes 6 servings.

Sassafras is a genus of deciduous trees.
Essential oil distilled from the root-bark or the fruit is used as flavoring.

Answer 4

ROUX RECIPE Ingredients 3/4 cup oil (Canola or Vegetable) 1 cup all purpose white flour Directions Heat a heavy skillet or cast iron pot and add oil. Once oil is heated, slowly add the flour, stirring constantly until all is blended. Continue to cook over medium to low heat, stirring constantly until flour and oil blend to form a brown roux the color of a dark copper penny. The longer you cook it, the darker the roux will become. Remember don't rush the cooking of the roux; allow the mixture to develop at its own pace. Transfer to cooking pot and add warm water to hot roux for thickness desired. The mixture will make 5 quarts gumbo juice or one large fricassee dish. Many cooks add onion, bell pepper, and celery mixture right at the end of the cooking process. This spreads the flavor through out the roux. You can double or triple the recipe and store the unused roux in a covered container in your icebox for weeks to be used for future dishes. Roux can be used to flavor or thicken gravies. A dish made with roux always taste better the next day or if frozen the next time it is reheated. If you push the roux too far or burn the roux, the flavor becomes too bitter to use. Throw out and start again. You'll need a big pot! If you can make roux in the huge pot do that but if not, add it to the pot you will cook the gumbo in... GUMBO Ingredients: 1 to 2 pounds chicken wings 1 to 1-1/2 pounds andouille sausage, sliced about 1/4" thick on the bias (you may substitute hot or mild smoked sausage if good andouille isn't available) and/or fresh Creole hot sausage, browned 4 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined 6 blue crabs, cleaned, broken in half and claws pulled off (or for a more elegant looking gumbo, omit and instead add 1-1/2 pounds lump white crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage) 3 pounds okra, sliced (leave out if you don't like okra, but be sure to add filé at the end if you leave out the okra) 2 onions, chopped 1 bunch green onions with tops, chopped 2 bell peppers, chopped 5 ribs celery, chopped several cloves garlic, minced 3 bay leaves 1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped Creole seasoning to taste, (Zataran's) OR black, white and cayenne peppers, to taste Salt to taste Few dashes Tabasco, or to taste. 1 - 2 tablespoons filé powder (ONLY IF YOU DON'T USE OKRA!) Steaming hot Louisiana long-grain rice 5 quarts chicken stock Sprinkle the chicken pieces with Creole seasoning and brown in the oven. Slice the sausage and brown, pouring off all the fat (especially if you're using fresh Creole hot sausage). Sauté the onions, green onions, bell pepper and celery if you haven't already added them to the roux, and add to the roux. Add the chicken stock...(you need a huge pot). Add the chicken and sausage(s). Add the bay leaves and Creole seasoning (or ground peppers) to taste and stir. Bring to a boil and immediately reduce to a simmer; let simmer for about 45 minutes. Keep tasting and adjusting seasonings as needed. Add the okra and cook another 30 minutes or so. Make sure that the "ropiness" or "stringiness" from the okra is gone, add the parsley, crab halves and claws (if you're using them). Cook for another 15 minutes, then add the shrimp (and if you've omitted the hard-shell crabs, add the lump crabmeat now). Give it another 6-8 minutes or so, until the shrimp are just done, turning pink. Be very careful not to overcook the shrimp; adding the shrimp should be the very last step. If there is any fat on the surface of the gumbo, try to skim off as much of it as possible. Serve generous amounts in bowls over about 1/2 cup of hot rice -- claws, shells, bones and all (if you've made the original "rustic" version). Remember that the rice goes in the bowl first, and it is not an optional step, despite the trend among some New Orleans restaurants to serve a riceless gumbo. You may, if you like, sprinkle a small amount of gumbo filé in your individual serving for a little more flavor; just remember that if you're making a filé gumbo, it should be added to the pot off the fire for its proper thickening action.

Answer 5

2 cups Andouille sausage, cut 1/4-inch thick rounds
1 cup roughly chopped celery
1 1/2 cups roughly chopped onions
2 cups roughly chopped green and/or red bell peppers
2 tablespoons roughly chopped garlic
2 cups diced and drained tomatoes
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning of choice (recommended: J.O. spice seasoning)
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon hot sauce
6 cups shrimp stock, recipe follows
1 1/2 pounds size 31 to 35 shrimp, peeled and de-veined (save shells for stock)
3 cups select oysters
1/2 pound blue crab claw meat, picked over, or 6 prime soft shell crabs, top shells peeled off, cut up
3 cups fresh or frozen okra, cut into 1/2-inch dice
2 tablespoons sassafras or file powder
Roux, recipe follows

In a large gumbo pot, brown Andouille sausage over medium-high heat. Add celery, onions, bell peppers, and garlic and cook until translucent. Add tomatoes and seasonings and cook for a few minutes. Add shrimp stock, reduce the heat, and let it come to a slow boil. Next, add all the seafood (make sure your pot is at a slow boil before you add your seafood). After a few minutes, add okra and cook for 5 minutes. Add sassafras or file and cook over low heat for another 10 to 20 minutes.
Add the roux, stirring it into the gumbo until thickened like a light gravy that coats the back of a spoon. Serve with cooked white rice and garnish with white lump crabmeat or cocktail crab claws, if desired.


Shrimp Stock:
Shrimp shells from 1 1/2 pounds of shrimp (save shrimp for gumbo)
6 cups water
Salt
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
2 to 3 cloves garlic, crushed

Cover shrimp shells with water in a large pot and bring to a boil. You may have to add more water during the cooking time to maintain the same level of water. Season with salt and add onions, celery, and garlic. After boiling for 30 minutes to 1 hour, strain stock and discard solids.

Roux:
1 cup flour
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup minced celery
1/4 cup minced onions
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Mix the flour and oil together well in a large saute pan. Place on stove and cook over medium heat for 30 to 45 minutes or until dark brown. When you take the pan off the heat, add celery, onion, and Worcestershire sauce while the roux is hot. Let stand off the heat until the mixture in the gumbo pot has finished cooking.