September 2010 Meal #13: Chicken & Sausage Gumbo

This was my first time making gumbo ever and it turned out pretty good.  For Meal #13 I made Chicken and Sausage Gumbo.  I strayed away from making gumbo before since I figured it took too long to make but with this particular recipe it didn't take much time. I found this recipe in the cookbook "Garden of Flowers" which was made to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Playmate School on Oahu.  I found this cookbook of all places at a Powell's Used Bookstore here in Oregon and never used it til now.  Here's the recipe to share.

CHICKEN & SAUSAGE GUMBO
Ingredients:
1 lb. smoked sausage, cut into 1" slices
4-6 lbs. chicken, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces
4 tbsp. oil
1 stick butter
4 tbsp. flour
1 box frozen okra , thawed
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. green onion, chopped
3-4 cups water
1 cup chicken broth
salt, black pepper, & cayenne pepper to taste

Directions:
Make a roux by melting butter in a heavy pot; add olive oil and flour, stirring constantly over medium heat until mixture turns golden brown.  (Will take 10-15 minutes)  Stir in onion, celery, bell pepper, and cook on low heat unit onions are soft.  Stir in garlic and green onions to mixture and cook until soft.  Add water, chicken broth and season to taste.  Bring to boil.  Mix in chicken, sausage, and okra and simmer 1-2 hours.  Serve in soup bowls over rice or by itself.  Some like it thick as stew and others prefer it thin as soup.  To thicken, add more flour and to to thin, add more water.

Here is how it turned out.