Ingredients:
1 whole chicken
2 chicken bullion cubes
1 ring of sausage, anything that you like works well or a good Kielbasa
1 white onion, chopped
1 bunch of green onions, chopped
5 stalks of celery, trimmed, cleaned and chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 tsp Thyme
1 Tbsp BBP
1 Tbsp Gumbo Filet
Canola oil (up to a cup)
Flour (same amount as oil)
Preparation
Chicken/Broth
Place whole chicken in a large pot and add water and chicken bullion cubes. Boil for about 1 hour or until tender enough to be able to de-bone when cool. Remove chicken to another receptacle to cool. Leave pot of broth on the stove, burner off, and close to where the Roux will be made.
Roux
Start with a measured cup of oil, pour into a well seasoned cast iron skillet until the bottom of the pan is covered well. Note how much oil you used - use this same amount of flour in the next step. Turn on burner to medium high and heat oil. Add flour and start stirring. When all the flour is wet, the consistency should be like thin peanut butter and bubbling. If it is too wet, add a dash of flour. If it is too dry, add a dash of oil. At this time the mixture should be able to fill any void created by stirring and not leave a dry place in the pan. Stir mixture as it cooks and starts to turn light brown. Once the roux starts to darken, it'll get darker quickly so be ready to act fast.
When the mixture has turned medium brown, add chopped white onion, turn off burner and continue to stir. When mixture has turned dark brown, add chicken broth from pot the chicken was boiled in. Ladle in about 6-8 scoops, stirring with a whisk to break up clumps but be careful so as not to get burned by the steam. Stir the mixture as it cools down and stops steaming. Transfer your roux to the pot of broth and stir to mix. This is your base. Taste this before seasoning – it should be slightly sweet but not burnt tasting. If it is burnt tasting and burnt smelling, throw it out and start over. If it is slightly burnt or sour tasting, add a teaspoon of sugar to fix it.
Gumbo
Turn burner under pot on to low or medium low. In the cast iron skillet (cleaned after making your roux) add a splash of oil and saute the green onions then add to the pot. Saute the celery and the bell pepper together and add to the pot. Add the thyme, salt, pepper, BBP and Gumbo Filet. De-bone the chicken and chop all of the meat into bite size pieces, add to the pot. Cut the sausage in half long ways, then chop it into bite size pieces and add to the pot. Cover the pot and bring to a simmer for about an hour.
Make a pot of rice to serve with the Gumbo. After the Gumbo has simmered for an hour, turn off the burner and let it cool for about 30 minutes or to a serving temperature. Use the ladle to remove any excess oil from the surface of the Gumbo before serving.
By this time you should have several comments about the delicious aroma in your kitchen and some hungry people hanging around. Serve over rice, with french bread and mustard potato salad.
