GUMBO
MAFIA III
Creole soup with chicken, sausage and vegetables
PREP TIME: 1,5h + 30 min
PRICE: medium
LEVEL: medium
STATS: 445 kcal | 27 g protein | 29 g carbs | 24 g fat
YOU’LL NEED
big pot
pan
whisk
wooden spoon
INGREDIENTS:
ROUX
wheat flour, type 450 – 1/2 cup (70g)
rapeseed oil – 1/3 cup(70g)
SOUP
celery – a few stalks – 1 cup (200g)
green pepper – 1 small – 1 cup (150g)
onion – 1 large – 1 cup (150g)
good quality smoked sausage – 1 pc. (200g)
okra fresh or canned (can be omitted) – a few pods (100g)
chicken breast – 1 large piece (300g)
tomato – 1 pc. (200g)
garlic – 2 cloves (15g)
broth or water – 3 cups
black pepper, cayenne, and chili flakes – a pinch
dried oregano – 1 tsp
sweet pepper – 1 tsp
bay leaf – 1 pc.
salt
TOPPINGS
chives / spring onion – a few stalks
rice (preferably parboiled) – 1 packet (100g)
PREPARATION
1. PREPARATION OF INGREDIENTS (20 min)
Start by cutting vegetables and meat. This will significantly improve work in the following points. Clean the celery of leaves and sand.
Cut peppers, onions and celery stalks (i.e. Trinity according to New Orleans cuisine) into cubes and put into a separate bowl.
Cut the sausage into slices and the chicken into thicker cubes. Peel the tomato and dice it.
2. ROUX (20 min)
This is a key stage in the gumbo preparation that takes patience, but then things will get easier. You only need to focus on this activity, as the roux is easy to burn. It is best to prepare it in a pot with a thick bottom that distributes the heat evenly.
Pour the oil into the pot and pour the flour. Whisk thoroughly so as to completely distribute the flour in the oil. Then set the burner on medium power and heat the mixture, stirring from time to time, until it starts to bubble a little.
Reduce the gas to a minimum and fry the mixture, stirring very often. Stirring is very important as all you need is a moment of inattention and the roux will burn and this will mean you will have to repeat the process with a new batch.
The color will begin to become more intense over time – the point is to obtain at least the color of milk chocolate. You can try to fry the flour to a darker color, but the equivalent of milk chocolate is fine (see photo).
3. ROUX + VEGETABLES (8 min)
Add chopped paprika, onion and celery to the milk-chocolate roux and mix – it will hiss a lot and the color will darken even more, that’s how it should be. Fry the mixture over medium heat for 5-8 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. FRYING SAUSAGE (3 min)
Fry the chopped sausage without fat over medium heat, until it is golden brown.
5. STEWING (40 min)
Slowly pour hot broth or water into the pot with roux and vegetables (soup without real broth will lose a little bit, but not so much that you cannot skip it), stirring constantly. Then add chopped tomato, fried sausage (it can also be half of the fat that has melted from it, but if you don’t want a fatty soup, you can skip it), chopped chicken breast, crushed garlic, sweet paprika, black pepper, cayenne and chili flakes (add as much as you like), oregano, 1 teaspoon of salt and bay leaf. Stir everything and stew it for about 40 minutes, stirring from time to time and adding broth or water if the soup is too thick.
5. RICE (15-20 min)
Boil the rice in a bag (it’s easier), or in the traditional way, i.e. sticking to the rule: 1 cup of rice for 2 cups of boiling water + a little salt. Mix the water with the rice and simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring frequently. Then let the rice rest for 5 minutes to allow it to absorb any remaining water.
6. OKRA (10 min)
This ingredient can be omitted, because we know that its availability is difficult, but if you live near an oriental food store, we encourage you to buy canned okra, because it is an ingredient that gives the dish not only additional density, but also a characteristic taste. Drain the okra from the brine, rinse with water and cut into thick slices. Add to the pot with the soup and stew it for 8 more minutes.
7. SEASONING (1 min)
Try the cooked gumbo – if necessary, add a little more spices and salt.
SERVING
Pour hot soup into bowls, sprinkle with chopped spring onions and serve with a little rice.
The people of 68′ Orlean would probably not hesitate to pour a glass of whiskey as an accompaniment 🙂
This post was created thanks to the courtesy of Cenega, which is the game publisher in Poland.