This gumbo recipe is filled with all the
right notes-sausage, chicken, shrimp, and crab. We can't ignore the spices and
veggies that compliment this feast. This was my first attempt at cooking Gumbo.
After two trips to New Orleans and a friend whose family taught me the
"right" way to eat the dish (less on the rice, more on the gumbo), I
had a hankering for this Louisiana classic.
Random fact about me: I'm not a fan on a
lot of seafood. One ingredient in this dish, crab legs, I am not a
fan of. I tried one half of a crab leg and gave up! They are too much work for me! I honestly can't remember the last time I ate a crab before this dish.
One thing that I changed about my dish from
the other recipes I saw was the type of sausage I used. I added mild Italian
sausage instead of andouille sausage. I loved how the chicken breast, crab,
shrimp, and sausage added different types of flavors. It wasn't too spicy and the italian gave it a better kick. I recommend adding the chicken and sausage juices back to the pot after searing.
Ingredients
4 boneless chicken
thighs
4 ounces of mild Italian
sausage (or andouille, if preferred)
½ pound of gumbo crabs
1 pound of medium
shrimp, peeled and deveined
½ teaspoon Thyme
1 whole chopped onion
¼ cup of chopped fresh
parsley
1 whole chopped green
bell pepper
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons Cajun
seasoning
1 tablespoon Creole
seasoning
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic
powder
3 bay leaves
1 can of Basil diced
tomatoes, undrained
6 cups of water
3 cloves of garlic,
chopped
2 cups of jasmine rice
1 tablespoon of olive
oil
3/4 cup of chopped green
onions
Preparation
1. Prep onions, peppers, celery, and garlic. Heat
Dutch oven (or pot) with olive oil over medium heat. Rub chicken breasts
with Cajun seasoning and garlic powder. Once skillet is hot, place chicken
breasts in skillet to sear two minutes or until browned on both
sides. Take chicken out of skillet and add sausage to same pot. Once
browned, remove.
3. Turn heat down to medium-combine Zatarain’s
Gumbo Base, New Orleans style to water and stir. Simmer over medium heat until
thickened.
4. Add onion, garlic, green pepper, and celery
to roux and cook for 8-10 minutes.
5. Add chicken, sausage, crab legs, creole
seasoning, paprika, thyme, and bay leaves. Cook for 5 minutes. Next, add entire
can of diced tomatoes-undrained- and 6 cups of water. Allow ingredients to cook
for 45 minutes. Then add shrimp to cook for 5 minutes until done.
6. Stir in half of green onions and parsley.
Garnish with green onions and parsley, if desired.
You can also print this recipe here.
Xx,
Whitney
thesimple-note.blogspot.com
