Stock
10 lbs. chicken (leg thigh quarters)
5 lbs. chicken breasts (optional)
4 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Some black pepper
Roux
2 cups of vegetable oil
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 bunches shallots
4 medium yellow onions
1 stalk celery
1 medium sized green pepper
1 bunch of flat leafed parsley
1 clove garlic
2 lbs. beef smoked sausage
Salt, dried thyme, bay leaves, and black pepper
1 quart of oysters
File’
Red pepper flakes
Make Stock
Clean chicken- cut legs from thighs, cut breasts in half, cut off large pieces of fat and some skin, but leave most on. Put chicken in 16 quart pot. Add water to cover chicken plus 2 inches (approx). Add bay leaves, thyme, and black pepper (Granny does not add salt to make stock because it’s hard to tell how salty everything else will turnout).
Bring water to boil then bring back to simmer. Cook for at least half hour- check chicken pieces for doneness. When all chicken is cooked, remove from pot and spread out on pan to cool.
DON’T THROW STOCK OUT!
Chop seasonings
Clean seasonings and chop in food processor
Tips: Granny cuts off bottom 6 inches or so of the celery stalks (by the white part) and discards that end. She keeps the celery leaves on and chops with stems. She also cuts off a few inches of the green onions so that only the firm part is used. Also cut off most of the parsley stems. Keep the parsley and garlic separate as they are added later than the other seasonings.
Make Roux
Heat 2 cups of oil (on medium heat) in a heavy seafood/chicken fryer type pot. Let oil get hot first. Add flour a little at a time stirring. Roux should only be slightly to no bubbling. Stir constantly (just don’t let it stick and get lumpy or burn). When the roux gets the color caramel, it’s ready for seasonings. Add onions, celery, and green pepper. Stir and cover. Stir every few minutes. After ten or so minutes, add parsley and garlic. Continue cooking (another 15+ minutes) until you see the oil rising above the mixture. Once this occurs you can cook a little longer always making sure it is not sticking.
Meanwhile, remove bones and skin from chicken. Cut chicken into bite size pieces. Strain chicken broth. After broth sits a while, skin most of the aft off the top. Slice sausage, put with paper towels to remove excess oil, then put in microwave for = 5 minutes. Pour roux into large gumbo pot. Add chicken, sausage, and gradually add stock. Add 4-5 bay leaves, 1-2 teaspoons of thyme (maybe some red pepper flakes) and some salt. Don’t make too salty since oysters would be added later. If gumbo looks a little thick, add about 2 cans of chicken broth or so.
On Thanksgiving Day, gumbo would be slowly warmed until simmering hot. Add 1 quart of oysters with liquid. Then salt gumbo to taste. You can also stir file’ in. File’ and peppers may also be added at the table.