A wonderful and authentic gumbo recipe ” Str8 Outta The Bayou”!

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken 3-4 pounds

1 lb large shrimp (deshelled and cleaned)

2 large onions, 1 quartered the other medium diced

3 stalks of celery, 2 halved and the other medium diced

2 carrots halved

3 sprigs of thyme

3 bay leaves

2 Tbs peppercorns

1/2 lb of unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups of flour

1 Lb of Andouille sausage

1 green bell pepper medium dice

1 red bell pepper medium dice

3 cloves of garlic finely chopped

1 Tbs creole seasoning

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp Gumbo filé powder (dried sassafras leaves)

Salt & Black pepper to taste

sliced scallions or chopped parsley, for garnish

Directions:

Combine the chicken, carrots, fresh thyme, halved celery, quartered onion, peppercorns, and 2 bay leaves with 10-12 cups of water into a 10 quart stockpot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until chicken is cooked through; about 35-45 minutes. Remove the chicken, allow it to cool then discard the skin and shred the meat from it. Strain the stock and set it aside.

Heat the butter in an 8 qt saucepan over medium high heat and whisk in the the flour. Continue constant whisking until you have a dark brown roux. Add bell peppers, chopped onion, chopped celery, bay leaf, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook until onions become soft then add Creole seasoning, cayenne, dried thyme, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and andouille sausage; cook until fat begins to render from the sausage, about 5 minutes. Add 6-7 cups of the reserved stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook (frequently stirring) until it thickens 10-15 minutes. Add chicken and shrimp then cook 10 more minutes until hot and remove from the heat and stir in the File powder. Serve in a bowl with white rice and garnish with scallions. Bon Appetit!