Chicken and Andouille Sausage Gumbo

The hiatus is over!! I was so happy to return Tuesday. In case you missed it, I have been immersed in a work project for the last several weeks. It culminated in a two and half week trip to North Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming. Our team, composed of people from Louisiana and the aforementioned locations, was supposed to take off on Wednesday the 12th of February, but was delayed until the following Sunday. We spent Monday and Tuesday in North Dakota, then got set to fly to Montana on Wednesday. Well the military aircraft we had reserved broke and we couldn't get another one until the following Tuesday. This was unacceptable to those running the show, and flights from Minot, ND to Great Falls, MT were few and far between, so off we went to the local Amtrak station. On Thursday, we took this train (which was actually really fun) from Minot to the bustling metropolis of Havre, MT. From there we got a bus from the base to take us the rest of the way to Great Falls. We spent Friday and Saturday in Montana then flew a chartered jet (I think a general somewhere freaked out when his team of 70+ Air Force folks had to resort to Amtrak) to Cheyenne. We were in Wyoming for the rest of the time. I enjoyed all the places we were at, but Cheyenne was the best. Our hotel was old and decrepit and possibly haunted. But it was in downtown and literally surrounded by places to eat. Among other things, we had a fantastic coffee shop, a bagel shop and a brewery, all of which are impossible to find in Shreveport.

As nice as it was to be near these nice places to eat and to get to see snow again, I missed my family greatly, and I was soooooo happy to get home. And now that this project is wrapping up, I will be able to try a few new things in the kitchen. Tonight, I wanted to try something different from that nolacuisine.com website that I love so much. If you want to try some AUTHENTIC cajun/creole recipes, this is the place to be. The red beans and rice recipe is just about perfect and their shrimp etouffe is wonderful. But we haven't tried their gumbo yet. We have a Shreveport Gumbo recipe from my dad, but this one is way different. I was under the impression that gumbo was another word for okra, so I was surprised that this recipe didn't have any okra in it. Also, no shrimp. This one was chicken and andouille. This guy has a recipe for his own andouille, but we just buy our own from the local cajun meat market, Bergeron's. We used chicken thighs like he recommends, but we used boneless. The end result was amazing. I have never been disappointed by anything on this website. We served this with the creole rice also found on the site.

The following is from nolacuisine.com:

http://www.nolacuisine.com/2006/02/20/chicken-andouille-sausage-gumbo-recipe/

Chicken and Andouille Sausage Gumbo Recipe

1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
3/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
4 Tbsp Creole Seasoning
1 Cup Onions, diced
1/2 Cup Green Bell Pepper, diced
1/2 Cup Celery, Diced
1 1/2 Cups Andouille, sliced
3 Tbsp Garlic, chopped
6 Cups cold Chicken Stock
3 Fresh Bay Leaves
4 Chicken Thighs, seasoned liberally with Creole Seasoning
2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
Hot Sauce to taste
Kosher Salt to taste, if necessary
2 Tablespoons Italian Parsley, chiffonade
1/4 Cup Thinly Sliced Green Onions
Creole Boiled Rice
Fresh French Bread

Bake the chicken thighs in a 350-400 degree oven until brown.
Mix your onion, celery, and bell pepper together: The Holy Trinity.
Heat the oil in a cast iron dutch oven over medium heat. Whisk in the flour to make a milk chocolate Roux (making a Roux). Add the Andouille, 1 Tbsp of Seasoning, and 3/4 of the Holy Trinity, cook, stirring often, for about ten minutes or until the vegetables soften. Add the cold stock, the remaining 1/4 trinity, remaining seasoning, and Garlic. Bring to a Boil. Bring this down to a simmer, add the baked thighs and let it go for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally. About 10-15 minutes before you’re ready to serve, remove the Chicken from the bone and add the meat back to the pot. Add the Worcestershire, Hot Sauce, and 1/2 of the Green Onions. Serve with Creole Boiled Rice, crusty French Bread, and a good cold beer (I like Dixie or Abita Amber).
Garnish with green onions, and the parsley.

* I prefer Chicken Thighs for my soups and Gumbos. It’s the misunderstood portion of the bird, which is fine by me because it keeps the price down. I get them bone in, then Cartel wrap the bones and stick them in the freezer for stock. I’m like a Vulture when it comes to bones for stocks, my freezer looks like the Catacombs (animals only of course).

This makes about 3-4 Main Course Servings