Gumbo

Name: Gumbo
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Creole
Ingredients: 3/4 cup all-purpose flour; 3/4 cup vegetable oil; 1 onion, diced; 1 green bell pepper, diced; 2 celery stalks, diced; 4 cloves garlic, minced; 8 cups chicken or seafood stock; 1 lb andouille sausage, sliced; 1 lb chicken thighs, cut into pieces; 1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined; 1 lb crab meat or crab claws; 2 bay leaves; 1 teaspoon thyme; Cayenne, salt, and black pepper, to taste; Filé powder and sliced scallions, to finish; Steamed white rice, to serve

Serve when

Ladle it over rice the moment the roux has gone the color of a copper penny and the whole kitchen smells like it.

In the series

Season 1

S1E5 · ~00:19:00 Phil eats gumbo at Dooky Chase, the legendary Creole restaurant that shaped New Orleans cooking for generations

In the series

Dooky Chase, run for decades by the late Leah Chase, is one of the most important restaurants in New Orleans's civil rights history as much as its food history — a Black Creole institution that hosted meetings during the movement's most dangerous years. The gumbo Phil eats there carries all of that weight in a single bowl.

Ingredients

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
8 cups chicken or seafood stock
1 lb andouille sausage, sliced
1 lb chicken thighs, cut into pieces
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 lb crab meat or crab claws
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon thyme
Cayenne, salt, and black pepper, to taste
Filé powder and sliced scallions, to finish
Steamed white rice, to serve

Method

Whisk the flour and oil together in a heavy pot over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the roux turns a deep reddish-brown, 30 to 45 minutes. Do not walk away from it — a burnt roux means starting over.
Add the onion, bell pepper, and celery straight into the hot roux and cook until softened, which also stops the roux from cooking further.
Stir in the garlic, then gradually whisk in the stock so no lumps form.
Add the sausage, chicken, bay leaves, and thyme, and simmer uncovered for at least an hour, skimming any fat that rises.
Add the shrimp and crab in the last 10 minutes, just long enough for the shrimp to turn pink and opaque. Season with cayenne, salt, and pepper.
Serve over rice, finished with a scatter of filé powder and scallions.

Substitutions

Filé powder: Ground sassafras leaves are traditional for thickening and flavor; if unavailable, a slightly longer simmer and a good dark roux carry the dish without it.
Andouille: Any smoked, well-seasoned sausage works if true Louisiana andouille isn't sold locally.

Beyond the recipe

Go deeper

Wikipedia: Leah Chase