Easy Gumbo Recipe (German Coast Inspired)
Serves 10
15 mins prep
45 mins cook
60 mins total
Gumbo, you may think, is not German at all. It's correct that influences from France helped to shape this cajun dish, too. However, it was the German sausage making that helped the Louisiana-famous Andouille come to life. So yes, Andouille sausage is German. The German coast where it was invented is an area in Louisiana that is located to the North of New Orleans on the west bank of the Mississippi River and it's where some of the best Gumbo comes from.
Scan QR code to shop the ingredients!
Get ingredients delivered
Prep your veggies first. Peel and small dice the onions. Remove stem, spines and seeds of bell pepper, and small dice. Trim the ends off the okra, cut into 1/2 inch slices. Trim the ends off the celery and small dice. Mince the garlic.
Prepare the roux by combining the oil and flour in a deep, large skillet (to avoid splatter). Stir constantly while heating. It's best to use a sauce whisk, which helps you to pick up the bottom of the pan and avoids the roux from burning.
No multitasking while making this!! If your roux gets dark too fast, turn down the heat a bit. You want to arrive at a milk chocolate color and as soon as you're there, you'll want to remove the pan from the heat, and pour in 1 quart of your (heated) chicken broth. The heating of the broth helps to avoid splatters.
See the note section below for additional tips on how to create a dark roux.
Stir until the sauce is combined (you may need to add in more later after the Gumbo is done simmering).
cup all-purpose flour
cup oil
quart chicken broth
Heat a separate deep skillet or deep pot (ideally an enameled cast iron pot, cut andouille sausage into 1/2 inch (1 cm) coins, then add to the cast iron pot. Cook on both sides until starting to brown. Remove the cooked sausage and transfer to a large plate.
links andouille sausage
Add the veggies, except garlic, and cook for a couple of minutes.
yellow onions
stalks celery
cup okra
green bell pepper
Add in the garlic for the last minute and stir. Now add back in the roux. Combine with the spices and herbs and simmer for 15 minutes. At this point, you may need to add in a bit more chicken broth to bring the Gumbo to a saucy consistency.
clove garlic
tsp sweet paprika powder
tsp ground white pepper
tsp ground black pepper
tsp dried oregano
tsp dried thyme
bay leaf
cayenne powder
cup shrimp
rotisserie chicken
tsp salt
Add the roux, browned sausage, cooked shrimp and rotisserie chicken meat and stir together. Allow to warm up for 5ish minutes. Don't stir too much after adding the chicken, or else it will just pull apart into shreds and your gumbo won't look as pretty.
Finally, season to taste with salt, pepper and cayenne and stir in the parsley. Serve it over steamed rice, and if you would like, with some Louisiana hot sauce to adjust the heat level for everyone at the table.
handful fresh parsley
