food & dining
Gimme Some Gumbo
friend recently bought me
a bag of fresh okra. That
sounds like an odd gift — but
she knows me and is aware that I am
always on the hunt for unique ingredi-
ents and innovative ways to use them.

The gift coincided with a damp, cold
spell, so gumbo suggested itself. There
are many diff erent types of gumbo, but
the main fault line is divided into Creole
and Cajun. Creole gumbo contains
tomatoes, dark roux, okra and shellfi sh,
while Cajun gumbo eschews tomatoes,
and usually contains chicken. Both
generally integrate ham and sausage.

Granted, many of these ingredients
would not be found in a kosher kitchen,
but using some of the techniques
and elements of a traditional gumbo
adapted to kashrut produced a
delicious meal.

The recipe is not diffi cult, but it
does involve several steps and is a bit
labor-intensive. The upside is that it
makes quite a lot and freezes well, so
this will feed a large crowd, or provide
many future meals to a smaller group.

We served this with a simple salad
and a loaf of crusty semolina bread.

Gumbo Makes about 1 gallon
Chicken and broth:
3 pounds bone-in chicken pieces
(breasts/thighs) 1
1 1
carrot, cut into chunks
onion, quartered
stalk celery, cut into large
chunks 1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Water Roux:
½ cup vegetable oil or margarine
½ cup fl our
Vegetables: 1½ pounds okra, cut into ¼-inch
slices 1 cup onion, chopped
½ cup celery, chopped
½ cup green pepper, chopped
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
½ cup scallions, white and green
parts, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
(to taste)
½ teaspoon salt
Meat: 1½ pounds andouille turkey sausage
(or other spicy, smoked sausage)
sliced into ¼-inch discs
Chicken from stock pot, cut into bite-
sized pieces
Soup: 3 quarts chicken broth
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
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18 FEBRUARY 2, 2023 | JEWISH EXPONENT
Finishing seasoning:
1 tablespoon Worcestershire
sauce 1 teaspoon (or more) Tabasco
sauce Salt/pepper/cayenne pepper to taste
To serve: cooked white rice and
chopped scallions to garnish
In a large stockpot, place the chicken
and broth ingredients, and cover them
with water. The recipe calls for 3 quarts
of stock, but if there is extra freeze
it and use it in soup — spare chicken
stock never goes to waste!
Bring it to a boil, then lower the heat,
cover and simmer until the chicken is
cooked, about 40 minutes.

Remove the chicken pieces from the
pot and, when they’re cool enough to
handle, remove the skin and bones; set
the meat aside, and return the skin and
bones to the stock. Continue simmer-
ing to enhance the fl avor of the broth.

While the stock simmers, make the
roux. In a large pot or Dutch oven,
place the oil and fl our. Mix with a whisk
or wooden spoon, and heat it over
medium. Continue stirring until the
roux turns a golden brown and gives
off a nutty aroma. This forms the basis
of the gumbo, so don’t rush this part! It
takes about 15 minutes.

When the roux is done, add the
vegetables and seasonings. Stir to coat,
and sauté until the veggies are soft.

The okra may get stringy during the
sauté process; continue cooking until
it is no longer stringy. Add the sausage
and chicken; stir to coat. Strain 3 quarts
of chicken stock, and add it to the pot.

Add the tomatoes and stir.

Bring it to a boil, then lower the
heat and simmer for 1½ hours, stirring
occasionally. Add the fi nishing season-
ings, taste and serve.

For each serving, ladle the gumbo
into a bowl, top it with a scoop of
cooked white rice (about a half-cup
per bowl) and garnish with chopped
scallions, including both the white and
green parts. ■
Keri White is a Philadelphia-based
freelance food writer.

Photos by Keri White
A Keri White