Chicken Sausage Gumbo

Hi Everybody!  How Ya’ll Are? Spring is slowly working its way into my brain.  By late February and early March, I am getting pretty desperate for the winter to end.  I’m tired of gray skies and brown landscapes. I’m tired of my winter clothes and being cold.  I’m even tired of the fires in the fireplace. I am just over all of it. When Valentine’s Day has come and gone, I finally begin to see the glow of the coming Spring on the horizon.  The promise of Easter is in the air but before that comes Fat Tuesday. Now, when I was a kid, my family did not celebrate this day. I actually did not really know much about it until I was an adult and working at Illinois College.  I knew about Mardi Gras, of course, but was unfamiliar with the concept of feasting on Fat Tuesday. I have always been drawn to Cajun and Creole cooking. Actually, I have always been interested in anything with French American or French Canadian aspects.  I once took a Canadian Culture class in college and we sampled some wonderful foods that were prepared by my professor. The dishes were such that this Midwestern farm girl had never experienced and I loved them.

After I started work at IC, my boss at that time, Steve, decided to introduce the idea of a Fat Tuesday potluck in our department.  Steve always made a crockpot Jambalaya to share. It was so good and he was nice enough to give me the recipe. Steve has since retired but I have made that dish for our Fat Tuesday potlucks several times.  

My current boss, Patrick, and I will use any excuse to have a potluck or celebration, so we still carry on the Fat Tuesday office event.  I am a huge advocate of sharing a meal with people and I love, love, love making something delicious to contribute to the meal. For these late winter soirees I have also made Bananas Foster and King Cake.  This year I will be making a King Cake again. Hint – my King Cake is really my Cinnamon Sugar Tea Ring with Mardi Gras colored sugar as decoration and a little plastic baby inserted inside. Check out that recipe here.  I want to bring a side too but I can’t decide what that will be. I am leaning heavily toward hushpuppies or crawfish cornbread. One of my co-workers (Kelsi) will bring Mardi Gras chili so I think I will skip the Jambalaya this year.  

However, I still wanted to have something warm, comforting and Cajun this weekend at home so I decided to make some Chicken and Sausage Gumbo.  I am no expert on Cajun cooking and so I don’t really know what the differences are supposed to be between gumbo and jambalaya and I think that what I make is a combination of both.  It doesn’t matter to me as long as it is delicious and warming to the tummy and soul. This weekend it was bitterly cold here in Illinois so we definitely needed it. We always enjoy this wonderful soup that is full of chicken, bacon, sausage, veggies and tomato spiked broth.  It has a huge amount of flavor and a little bit of spicy heat. It makes you want to say Ayeee!

You will need bacon, onion, green pepper, celery, minced garlic, 1 whole fryer or roaster chicken, canned chicken broth (you can also use the saved broth from cooking your chicken if you wish), salt, pepper, tomato sauce with herbs, okra (canned or frozen), smoked sausage or andouille and cajun seasoning.  You can also add a little cayenne if you want a little more heat.

You can substitute 6 whole chicken breasts (boiled) or the meat from 1 whole rotisserie chicken for the whole boiled chicken if you would like.  I love to buy a cold rotisserie chicken and use it for this type of recipe. It is a real time saver.

In a large stock pot, boil the chicken in water with a couple of cubes of chicken bouillon added until done (about 30 minutes).  Remove the chicken from the pot and remove the meat from the bones when cool enough to handle. Chop or shred the meat into bite-sized pieces.  Reserve the broth if you wish but discard the bones and skin (we put ours out for the possums and raccoons – they love us). You will need 64 oz. of broth so you may need to add some canned broth if you are using what is left in your pot.    Wipe out the stock pot to use again. While the chicken is cooking, coursely chop the onion, green pepper and celery and set aside. At this time, if you are using frozen okra place it into a colandar and run some water over it to get rid of any ice crystals and start the thawing process.  If you are using canned okra all you need to do is open the cans and drain the liquid and then set them aside. Once the chicken has been prepared, place the bacon that has been cut into small pieces into the pot. Cook for a minute or two until there is a little bit of fat coating the bottom of the pot and then add the onion, green pepper, and celery.  Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the sliced sausage or andouille and garlic.  Saute for 3 minutes until the veggies are softened and the bacon and sausage are beginning to brown a bit.

Add the chicken broth, the chicken pieces, salt and pepper.  Bring this to a simmer over medium high heat and cook, covered, for 30 minutes.  Add the tomato sauce, okra and cajun seasoning (and cayenne if using) and simmer until the okra is tender.  This takes anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes. If you use canned okra the time will be shorter.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.  Ladle into nice big bowls and serve. Sometimes we make white rice and add that to the bowl first, ladling the gumbo over the top.  Served with some warm cornbread or hushpuppies this makes a wonderful filling meal.

Print Recipe

Chicken Sausage Gumbo

This wonderful soup is full of chicken, bacon, sausage, veggies, and tomato spiked broth. It has a huge amount of flavor and a little bit of spicy heat. It makes you want to say Ayeee!

Servings: 8

Author: Wench Sherry

Ingredients

• 6 slices bacon cut into small pieces
• 2 cups onions diced
• 2 cups green pepper diced
• 2 cups celery diced
• 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 whole chicken or 6 boneless chicken breasts
• 1 pound smoked sausage or andouille
• 64 ounces chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
• 1 15 oz. can tomato and herb sauce
• 16 oz. bag frozen, sliced okra
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne optional

Instructions

• In a large stock pot, boil the chicken in water with some bouillon added until done (about 30 minutes). Remove the chicken from the pot and remove the meat from the bones when cool enough to handle. Chop or shred the meat into bite-sized pieces. Reserve the broth if you wish but discard the bones and skin. 
• Wipe out the stock pot to use again. 
• While the chicken is cooking, dice the onion, green pepper, and celery and set aside. At this time, if you are using frozen okra, place it into a colander and run some water over it to get rid of any ice crystals and start the thawing process. If you are using canned okra (2 – 3 cans) all you need to do is open the cans and drain the liquid and then set them aside. 
• Place the bacon that has been cut into small pieces into the pot. Cook for a minute or two until there is a little bit of fat coating the bottom of the pot.
• Add the onion, green pepper, and celery. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add the sliced sausage or andouille and garlic. Saute for 3 minutes until the veggies are softened and the bacon and sausage are beginning to brown a bit.
• Add the chicken broth, the chicken pieces, and salt and pepper. Bring this to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook, covered, for 30 minutes. 
• Add the tomato sauce, okra and cajun seasoning (and cayenne if using) and simmer until the okra is tender. This takes anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes. If you use canned okra the time will be shorter. 
• Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.