My old recipe. Feel free to take shortcuts. It's Gumbo, do whatever. I now add about 1/2 teaspoon ground Anise, 1/2 teaspoon smoked Paprika, and use Cauliflower rice instead of white.
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For the Roux
1 heaping cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup oil (vegetable or canola oil)
For the Gumbo
1 bunch celery , diced, leaves and all
1 green bell pepper , diced
1 large yellow onion , diced
1 bag frozen cut okra (~16 oz)
1 bunch green onion , finely chopped
1 bunch fresh chopped parsley , finely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic
1-2 Tablespoons low sodium Cajun seasoning (or Sassafras)
6-8 cups salt free Chicken broth
12 ounce package andouille sausages , sliced into 'coins' (or use your favorite)
Meat from 1 Rotisserie Chicken
2 cups Shrimps , pre-cooked
cooked rice for serving
Instructions
Make the Roux In a large, heavy bottom stock pot combine flour and oil Cook on medium-low heat, stirring constantly for 30-45 minutes This part takes patience--when it's finished it should be as dark as chocolate and have a soft, "cookie dough" like consistency Be careful not to let it burn! Feel free to add a little more flour or oil as needed to reach this consistency
Brown the sausage In a separate skillet on medium-high heat place the sausage slices in one layer in the pan Brown them well on one side (2-3 minutes) and then use a fork to flip each over onto the other side to brown Remove to a plate
Cook the vegetables in broth Add ½ cup of the chicken broth to the hot skillet that had the sausage to deglaze the pan Pour the broth and drippings into your large soup pot
Add remaining 5 ½ cups of chicken broth Add veggies, parsley, and roux to the pot and stir well
Bring to a boil over medium heat and boil for 5-7 minutes, or until the vegetables are slightly tender (Skim off any foam that may rise to the top of the pot) Stir in cajun seasoning, to taste
Add meat Add chicken, sausage, and shrimp
Taste and serve At this point taste it and add more seasonings to your liking--salt, pepper, chicken bullion paste, garlic, more Joe's stuff or more chicken broth--until you reach the perfect flavor Serve warm over rice (Tastes even better the next day!)
