Just thought I'd share. I'm sure my method is similar to most in many ways.

ETA: I like my gumbo to have some body, and not be thin. I wouldn't call it "thick", but somewhere in between. So keep that in mind if you want to use my flour to oil ratio. If you like a fairly thin gumbo, scale down.

INGREDIENTS:

- 2.5 cups flour (This is just a reference. I may add more or less, based on feel of the roux)
- 1.5 cup oil (rendered fat from chicken and sausage + vegetable oil)
- 5 lb bone-in chicken thighs
- 22 oz Andouille Sausage sliced into ¼ inch pieces (or other pork sausage)
- 2 Yellow Onions Chopped
- 2 Bell Peppers Chopped
- 1 Bunch Green Onions Chopped
- 1/2 Bunch Celery Chopped
- 3 Cloves Garlic Chopped
- 1 gallon chicken stock (make your own or use bouillon, better than bouillon, etc)
- 2 bay leaves
- Creole Seasoning (Tony’s Chacheres) to taste
- Other Seasoning - Salt, Pepper, Garlic Powder to taste
- Rice - However much you want. If you are planning on using all of this recipe and not freezing any, then I would plan on 6-8 cups of dry rice.

Instructions:

1a. Pour stock into big stockpot and add bay leaves. Turn heat on high until it comes to a boil. Do the remaining steps as you are waiting for it to boil. Cut heat back to simmer once boiling.

1b. Dust your sausage with your favorite creole seasoning and brown. DO NOT drain grease. Once browned, set sausage aside in a bowl lined with paper towels to catch the grease. These got a little too brown for my liking, but were still good.

2. Remove skins from chicken thighs and dust chicken with creole seasoning on both sides. I also sometimes cook the skins for some chicken cracklins, so you'll want to dust those too if you are doing this.

3. Add chicken skins to skillet and fry on both sides. Set aside.

4. Brown chicken on both sides - about 3 minutes or so a side.

5.Once chicken is browned, add to stock pot along with the sausage.

6. Pour out rendered fat from sausage and chicken into measuring cup. I got about 3/4 a cup of rendered fat from this cook. Add vegetable oil to get a full cup and a half (if needed).

7. Heat oil in skillet until a pinch of flour sizzles when dropped in. Adjust heat to just below medium heat. Stir in flour a little at a time until you have the consistency desired. My test is dragging the wooden spoon across the bottom of the skillet and the roux should take about a second to cover up the area. Stir roux constantly until it is done.

8. Cook roux until you get the color you want. I aim for milk chocolate color for chicken and sausage gumbo. If I'm doing a darker roux, I'll probably make the roux a bit thinner so it won't burn so easy. This roux took about 10 minutes to get the color I wanted.

About 5 minutes in

About 10 minutes in

9. Stir in your chopped vegetables (except green onion) to cool down the roux.

10. Increase the heat on the simmering stock and add the roux with vegetables. Stir until dissolved.

11. Taste test and adjust seasoning to your liking. I often don't have to add much or any since I already seasoned the meat. Let simmer for about an hour

12. Remove bay leaves and chicken. Debone chicken and add meat back to pot.

13. Serve with rice and topped with fresh green onion. Enjoy!

Sorry about the shadow in the last pic. :facepalm:

This post was edited on 11/8/23 at 9:19 am