A while back my company put together a company wide potluck that was themed “cultural” so we were to bring dishes that we would make in our culture and share these recipes for a cookbook they were putting together that we could purchase to donate the funds to the wounded warriors project. Out of all the many many (and I do mean many) potlucks we have this has to be the best idea! What better way to have an excuse to get together and share our favorite food AND also raise money for an awesome cause? I knew immediately what I wanted to bring and that was Gumbo. This is a dish that I grew up with my dad making (he has a cajun lineage) and one I enjoy making on chilly/rainy days.
The problem that I’ve had in the past is gumbo is really good if not better as a left over because the flavors have had a chance to really really marry but being cooked in a crockpot has never really worked with this dish when I’ve attempted. In my experience of all dishes made in a crockpot after a while the meat (whatever it may be) tends to start to breakdown and become mushy even if you put it on a low setting (mine has an 8 & 10 hour low setting). I set out to find a recipe for gumbo that was specifically designed for the crockpot and came across this one on about.com.
I don’t know if you’ve ever gone through about.com but it is in my opinion of the most underrated sites out there. I swear I find anything I’m looking for there when I’m on a mission to find a specific recipe so next time you’re lookin around for something think about checking about.com out if you don’t already.
A few things with this recipe in specific:
1. Don’t get impatient with the roux (like I tend to do) let it keep going and get a deep deep dark brown because it will definitely benefit the flavor factor if you have patience. I tend to see it start to turn brown and go “yep it’s done” and kick myself after the fact because if I would have let it go for a few more minutes the flavor would have been so much more rich.
2. When you’re using frozen okra it tends to breakdown a lot faster whether it’s in the crock pot or just a regular gumbo recipe so I know the recipe says to put it in with the rest of the ingredients and cook for 7 to 9 hours but PLEASE wait until the very end. I would say 45 minutes before serving is more than enough time to get it to thaw and that’s really your goal since it’s already cooked. If you are taking it to a potluck or party and have a warm setting and the crockpot will be on for a few hours then tossing it in before leaving the house will be sufficient. The same goes for the shrimp put it in at the same time you do the okra. Nothing worse than chewy overcooked shrimp!
3. For some reason the recipe fails to use bay leaves so if you have some in the cabinet definitely use in this can’t go wrong with a cajun dish and adding bay leaf even if the recipe doesn’t call for it! Also if you like spicy food some cayenne to your taste is necessary.
4. If you have chicken bullion please use it when cooking the rice (this goes anytime you cook the rice) you have no idea how much more flavor your rice will have if you don’t already do this. I have a jar of chicken bullion on hand at all times and when I’m cooking rice I just toss a teaspoon in the boiling water, you can also use canned broth but I’ve found investing in a jar of bullion is the least expensive option.
That’s all I have for now. Enjoy!
’til next time,
Crys
Unfortunately another dish I deleted the photo of before I started the blog 😦
Cook Time: 7 hours
Total Time: 7 hours
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 1/2 pound smoked sausage, cut into 1/2 inch slices
- 3/4 to 1 pound boneless chicken thighs, cut in bite-size pieces
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups frozen cut okra
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper, or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 cup frozen medium shrimp, cleaned and cooked
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked regular long-grain white rice
- 3 cups chicken broth or water (updated 9/07)
testing n tasting 