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Chicken and Sausage Gumbo is chock full of chicken, sausage, veggies, and spicy Cajun seasoning into a hearty stew. The hardest part is making the roux, but after it’s cooked everything just simmers.

 

I am going to caveat this by saying this is not an authentic gumbo recipe. It’s close enough to being a real gumbo recipe. But I don’t want people to comment saying I did this or that wrong and it’s not an authentic recipe. I’ve had that happen before. Even when I say it’s in the style of! Like, seriously? I didn’t say it was authentic!!

 

Anyway, this is a fairly easy gumbo recipe. It’s not crockpot gumbo easy, but the hardest part is babysitting the gumbo roux. You want to cook it enough so that you don’t have a gumbo roux that tastes like flour. I cooked mine for about 7 minutes, but on higher heat than in the instructions. Follow the instructions. And watch the roux. When it looks like peanut butter, you might want to pay more attention to it, so it doesn’t burn.

 

 

What is gumbo?

 

Gumbo is a smoked sausage soup made with a roux that has some kind of meat and the “holy trinity” simmered in flavored broth. Yes, that sort of oversimplifies the whole thing. The roux, which a base of butter cooked with flour, should be dark. As dark as you can get it without burning it. Gumbo holy trinity is equal parts of onion, celery, and bell pepper. Not to be confused with mirepoix. That is 2 parts onion to one part each carrot and celery.

 

However, there’s more variations of gumbo ingredients based on what part of Louisiana you’re in. Some cooks add filé powder to help thicken the stew. What’s gumbo filé powder? Well, gumbo filé powder is dried and ground leaves of the sassafras tree. Some believe that the Choktaw Indians in that area used the powder in cooking. Today, it’s used mainly to thicken and flavor gumbo and other Cajun/Creole recipes. I don’t really know if it’s used anywhere else for anything else.

 

 

The ”some kind of meat” varies depending on what you have on hand. For most it’s chicken, sausage, shrimp. But it could be gator, squirrel, rabbit, or oysters. Or even crawfish. That’s the beauty of this style of cooking. I don’t want to say this gumbo recipe. Because what is in gumbo can vary. It’s a recipe that uses whatever you have on hand to make a hearty meal for your family.

 

Another part of the “based on what part of Louisiana you’re in” speaks to the okra or no okra argument. Some say if you make gumbo with tomatoes then you can’t make the gumbo without okra. And vice versa. Since I used tomatoes, I did not add okra to this gumbo. So yes, gumbo can be made without okra.

 

 

How is chicken and sausage gumbo made?

 

Gumbo ingredients are simple. There’s nothing complicated about making chicken and sausage gumbo. It’s simple ingredients most of which you probably have on hand right now. Well, maybe not chicken. It’s like impossible to find now a days! Along with some kinds of beef.  And even if you don’t have Cajun seasoning, I know you can make some.  That’s made with pantry staples, too.

 

 

Chicken and sausage gumbo ingredients:

• Chicken
• Sausage
• Onion
• Celery
• Bell peppers
• Garlic
• Butter
• Flour
• Cajun seasoning
• Chicken broth

 

 

The first step is the roux. Can gumbo roux be made ahead of time? Yes, of course. I’m sure there are some cooks that keep a jar on hand in their fridge. If you make it ahead of time, I would cook just shy of the dark brown stage. That way you can cook it just a little before adding the rest of the ingredients.

 

Once the roux is ready, add in the holy trinity and the garlic. I cooked these until the onion started to soften. They usually start to change color and become a little translucent. That’s when I add the Cajun seasoning. I want it to cook a little bit to release its flavors before I add the chicken. I don’t like to add the chicken first because I want the chicken to simmer in the broth, not fry in the roux.

 

 

After the chicken browns a little, I add the sausage. I want it get a little color, too. So it cooks for several minutes. Then the rest of the ingredients go into the pot. Please do not skip the bay leaves. It is that umami flavor, for me at least, that most soups, stews, and roasts need. You don’t know you need it until you don’t have them. Then you’ll make it anyway but realize it’s missing something. It’s the bay leaves.

 

I simmered mine for at least an hour. I didn’t time it though. The longer it simmers the better, of course. Initially, I put in one tablespoon of Cajun seasoning. Mine is a little on the spicy side. After it simmered for about an hour, I checked to see if it needed more seasoning. It did so I added the other tablespoon. This is when I would add any additional salt or pepper you might like. I did not need to add more salt. No, I didn’t add any. The ingredients I used had plenty in there!

 

 

Maybe one day I will publish the family Cajun seasoning recipe. It has pantry staples in it, like I said. Onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, thyme, and a few other things. There’s one surprise ingredient in there. It is for me because I haven’t see a Cajun or blackened seasoning that is in there. This recipe has been in the family for a long time. Dad got it from a chef in New Orleans, so it’s my go to Cajun spice mix.

 

And just look at that bowl of goodness! So, I asked the hubs to dice the veggies. He didn’t really do that. He just chopped them. They’re a little larger than I wanted, but that’s fine. It doesn’t affect the flavor. You can see the flavor in that red broth there. Oh yeah baby! It’s packed with so much yum in there! I devoured this for lunch the next day, too! This is the best gumbo recipe I’ve made so far!

Cajun Creations

• Air Fryer Cajun Shrimp Pasta from Jen Around the World
• Blackened Shrimp from Art of Natural Living
• Cajun Mac and Cheese from Blogghetti
• Cajun Remoulade Sauce from That Recipe
• Cajun Style Peel and Eat Shrimp from Palatable Pastime
• Chicken and Sausage Gumbo from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
• Red Beans and Rice from The Spiffy Cookie

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