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Have made gumbo countless times over the years. Never thought to stick half the onions etc into a blender.

Will definitely give that a shot!

Roux looks perfect!

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This is what I took away from the recipe, and I'm going to give it a go tomorrow. Makes perfect sense

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Have made gumbo countless times over the years. Never thought to stick half the onions etc into a blender.

Will definitely give that a shot!

Roux looks perfect!

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This is what I took away from the recipe, and I'm going to give it a go tomorrow. Makes perfect sense

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Just as an FYI, I don't recommend taking half of your vegetables for this unless you feel you have too many chunks in your gumbo. Use the puree as a way to add more veggies i.e. more flavor without turning the gumbo into vegetable soup

That's what I'm intending to do- just want a boost of flavor in the soup base while the other flavors come together.
Gonna try it this afternoon

How does one go about making the homemade stock? Please excuse my ignorance.

Where can I score some crawfish tails in Dallas? Wanting to make this Saturday.

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How does one go about making the homemade stock? Please excuse my ignorance.

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This is pretty close to what I make. Instead of the whole chickens use carcasses. Omit the parsnips and dill and add Bay leaves.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/chicken-stock-recipe.html

Gumbo is awesome! Just made it. Thanks, Fido!!

Made this for NYE. Great flavor. Had a little trouble following directions (too distracted) and battled to get right consistency.

Thanks for posting!

I made my first gumbo yesterday.... chicken and sausage.

NOW I look and find this thread with all kinds of great tips.

[url=http://s1093.photobucket.com/user/Allen760401/media/IMG_0287_zpsxbtjdllh.jpg.html][/url]

What I learned:
1. Get a little braver with the roux.... get it darker.
2. Try another sausage. The Andouille was great but I have family that said it was spicy, meaning "too spicy for them".

I also bought a cheap little rice cooker at WalMart. That sure makes it easy.

Yeah - your roux is barely even cooked. You need to get it to the color of a Hershey bar at minimum. Some say darker than that.

You also need to debone your chicken next time. You did right by using thigh meat, but you need to get it off the bone. Andouille sausage is pretty good, though I'll be honest - i've found that i prefer a good pecan smoked jalapeno sausage in my gumbo over traditional andouille.

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Yeah - your roux is barely even cooked. You need to get it to the color of a Hershey bar at minimum. Some say darker than that.

You also need to debone your chicken next time. You did right by using thigh meat, but you need to get it off the bone. Andouille sausage is pretty good, though I'll be honest - i've found that i prefer a good pecan smoked jalapeno sausage in my gumbo over traditional andouille.

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Thanks for the tip on the sausage. I used a whole chicken and basically deboned everything except the drumsticks and wings. This gave me some "white meat" chunks in there too, but personally I agree with you and prefer thighs, especially in BBQ.

I used a microwave method for the roux (it is all over the internet). You zap it one minute at a time until you think you are getting close, then start zapping it in less time, like 20 to 30 seconds each time. For the first time, I was impatient and kept thinking I was going to burn it so I quit way too soon. Next time I am going to cook it in a skillet the old fashioned way.

Do you have a link for microwave roux?

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Do you have a link for microwave roux?

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[url=[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tZI4A86Zts][url][/url]][/url]

If link doesn't work just go to Youtube and enter "How to make a roux in the microwave".

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How does one go about making the homemade stock? Please excuse my ignorance.

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Whenever I cook shrimp and I peel them first, I put the shells in water and boil them, then run through a strainer saving the liquid. Even better if you have head on shrimp. Any fish carcass, same thing. I then freeze what I have and pull it out next time to melt down, add more to boil, and refreeze. I get to a concentrated stock in time and just have it in reserve when I'm ready to cook. Can do the same with chicken or veggies.

I like my gumbo pretty dark, took me a couple of times to get comfortable with not obsessing about cooking it too long.

What he said.

Stock is nothing more than flavored water when you get down to it. Take your chicken bones, put them in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a simmer for a few hours - until the little bits of meat and fat literally fall off the bone. Strain and put in quart or pint servings. Same for beef or turkey or seafood (i mix all kinds of seafood though - i save my shrimp shells, etc. In the freezer until I have enough to make a batch.)

Some folks also saute onions and bell peppers and boil them with the stock as well to add a little more flavor.

Edit: My phone typing sucks something fierce.

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How does one go about making the homemade stock? Please excuse my ignorance.

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Whenever I cook shrimp and I peel them first, I put the shells in water and boil them, then run through a strainer saving the liquid. Even better if you have head on shrimp. Any fish carcass, same thing. I then freeze what I have and pull it out next time to melt down, add more to boil, and refreeze. I get to a concentrated stock in time and just have it in reserve when I'm ready to cook. Can do the same with chicken or veggies.

I like my gumbo pretty dark, took me a couple of times to get comfortable with not obsessing about cooking it too long.

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This post reminded me of watching Andrew Zimmern last night. He was in Croatia and a lady there used stones gathered from the ocean to flavor her soup.

Key is real chicken stock or a fish/shrimp/crawfish(fat) stock depending on the seafood gumbo. You can also just bake flour directly on a flat cookie sheet to make the roux part easier. Browned flour cooks up a nice blonde roux that can be darkened a bit more in the pot.

I usually start early in the morning of a game weekend and boil a chicken and then the bones for a few hours.. Then I start the roux.

Best gameday food ever. I have to use the largest Lodge cast iron pot to keep every fed. We usually go through a ton of rice as well. Mine is dang near identical to Fido's, but I am very very particular about the andouille. I will have friends pick some up when in LA, or order off cajun grocery.

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but I am very very particular about the andouille. I will have friends pick some up when in LA, or order off cajun grocery.

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For my one and only try, posted earlier, I used Beaumont Boudin Andouille Sausage from HEB. I think they had one other choice, but I figured hey Beaumont is at the Louisiana border, so maybe they know what they are doing. Any comments pro or con about that brand of Andouille? Since it is my first time, this is the only one I have tasted that I know for sure was labeled Andouille.

Beaumont is as much Cajun country as south LA, MS and Alabama are.

Dont get wrapped up in the notion that simply because something is made in a region that it is automatically better. I will tell you that Holmes makes some of the best production boudin that you can get - and central Texas is not cajun country.

I get wrapped up in the taste. If I could find one from texas that didn't taste like crap, I'd use it first. Hell, half the andouille from LA is bad. I do not like Savoie's or Richard's and I can get both of those at albertson's or tom thumb (both LA sausages.)

They way I see it, the tang on andouille is the star of the show since gumbo has a subtle taste with lots of layers you build up over the long cooking time. I also think a high quality rice that stands up is important. I'll use uncle ben's in a pinch, or a jasmine rice.

I've tried Kountry Boy's, Zummo's, Holme's and a few other texas sausages, and none had the right tang/spice.

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I get wrapped up in the taste. If I could find one from texas that didn't taste like crap, I'd use it first. Hell, half the andouille from LA is bad. I do not like Savoie's or Richard's and I can get both of those at albertson's or tom thumb (both LA sausages.)

They way I see it, the tang on andouille is the star of the show since gumbo has a subtle taste with lots of layers you build up over the long cooking time. I also think a high quality rice that stands up is important. I'll use uncle ben's in a pinch, or a jasmine rice.

I've tried Kountry Boy's, Zummo's, Holme's and a few other texas sausages, and none had the right tang/spice.

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This is the important part. Andouille isn't the end all for me in terms of sausage in a gumbo, so i don't put a lot of effort into it. There are better options for my palate.

I agree. I love andouille, so it is important to me. If you go the smoked sausage route, pick one you love and it will set the gumbo off. I will sometimes split it and do somked/andouille. If i do that, I get Opa, Double D or Slovacek.

Speaking of rice, this variety (popcorn or Della) from Falcon Rice Mill in Crowley is awesomeness.

http://cajuncountryrice.com/rice-products/cajun-country-popcorn/

Finally made this today. It was damn good. Even with the Minnesota Andouille sausage.

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If you want to serve your gumbo properly, serve it with a scoop of potato salad.

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No kidding. The OPs gumbo looks good but take the word cajun out of that post everywhere it appears. That gumbo recipe would be loved by wealthy white people from New Orleans.

Because Super Bowl-great recipe.

I made this last weekend. Thought it was great. Made it with a combo of rice flour and almond flour to accommodate my wife. Still tasted great.

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If you want to serve your gumbo properly, serve it with a scoop of potato salad.

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There is only a small little area of LA that I have ever even heard of that puts potato salad with gumbo. It is definitely not the norm, and I can see why - it does not sound appealing at all.

By small area do you mean everything south of I-10 where most the population is?

Unless you're talking about using potato salad instead of rice. In which case I agree. That's weird.

But everywhere has people that plop their potato salad in the gumbo as opposed to dirtying another side dish.

Always had potato salad in Lafayette. But maybe that was just the group of people I ran around with.

Both my wife and my family are both from south Louisiana: hers from Lafayette and mine from Kaplan. Nobody on either side of our families have ever even heard of putting potato salad in our gumbo. Sounds disgusting.

My family was from the dump whats going south or make due with whats in the fridge family. Potato salad, boiled eggs, cornbread dressing. If its good then pour gumbo broth on it.

Anything leftover gets frozen. Veggies, bones, carcass, shells for stock. Waste not want not.

We never made grocery for gumbo. Maybe thats yalls problem with all these rules.