Mardi Gras Chicken And Sausage Gumbo

Total Time: 2 hrs 30 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 whole chicken
• 8 cups water
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon
• 2 small yellow onions, divided
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2 celery ribs
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 10 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 6 cups chicken stock (use the stock that the chicken is cooked in)
• 1 lb smoked sausage (we like "hot")
• 1 tablespoon tabasco sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/4 cup dried parsley

Recipe

• 1 place whole chicken in a large stockpot.
• 2 fill with 8 cups of water, or enough to cover the chicken.
• 3 place butter and chicken bouillon in the stockpot.
• 4 peel one onion and chop in large chunks; place in stockpot.
• 5 place pot on stove and simmer over medium heat for about 1-2 hours or until chicken is done.
• 6 remove pot from stove.
• 7 reserving stock, remove the chicken from the pot and place it on a cutting board to cool.
• 8 once chicken has cooled, debone and discard bones.
• 9 chop finely remaining onion, bell pepper and celery and set aside.
• 10 in a large stockpot, heat canola oil.
• 11 slowly add flour, a tablespoon at a time, stirring slowly and constantly with a whisk for about 20 minutes.
• 12 this is your roux and it should cook until it becomes chocolate brown in color.
• 13 be sure not to let the roux burn. if you see black specks in your roux you should throw it out and start over.
• 14 add onion, bell pepper and celery to the roux; stirring for about 3-4 minutes until they become soft.
• 15 stir in 6 cups of chicken stock (which you reserved from cooking the chicken).
• 16 slice the smoked sausage and add it to the stockpot.
• 17 season the gumbo with the tabasco, cayenne, salt, pepper, bay leaves, and parsley.
• 18 cover, and reduce heat to low and allow to cook for about 15 minutes.
• 19 add the chicken meat and cook for another 5-10 minutes or until chicken is heated through.
• 20 serve in bowls and top each bowl with rice.
• 21 additional dried parsley can be sprinkled on top for garnish.