best gumbo or jambalaya recipe, please!

FanOfFanboys

wife's birthday is this weekend. cooking for 13-15 people. with the cool weather I am thinking gumbo or jambalaya 

I have never made either, I think the difference is mainly rice cooked with or added after?

I want okra, shrimp, chicken, andouille sausage, all in it

also thinking about cornread in the cast iron but what are traditional sides to go with this?

going to have a bloody mary bar for drinks, needs ideas for dessert too

thanks!

GoldenQ

I like two gumbos.     1- Emerils recipe with chicken thighs. It is on Food network and is the one with the chicken thighs    2- Bodreaux Zydeco gumbo on allrecipes.com   Also I sometines add either crawfish tails or chunk catfish for the last 35 minutes always use okra whether the recipe calls for it or not.

kl8ton

...

fishlessman

this ones really good, chef wil was one of the better cooks here over the years

its more a plan than a recipe but puts you in the proper direction

Stew, Gumbo, Chicken & Sausage, Chef Wil


INGREDIENTS:
2 cups Peanut oil
2 cups all purpose flour
1 large onion, 1 med. Bell pepper, and 2 ribs of celery (chopped)
2 lbs Fresh pork sausage (cut in 3 in. lengths)
1 lb Smoked sausage (sliced)
2 49 1/2 Ozs Can Swansons chicken broth + 3 cups water
6 boneless chicken breasts ( cut in fourths and seasoned with salt and pepper )
1 Bunch Cut green onions
1 Bunch Chopped fresh parsley
8 hungry people or 4 cajuns….(wink)
I used an 8 qt. dutch oven




Procedure:
1 First you make the roux
2 cups of peanut oil and 2 cups of all purpose flour
3 (the peanut oil has a higher smoking point and a nutty flavor )
4 Heat oil until it is about 350 degrees, add flour, being careful not to burn yourself because the flour does contain moisture, stir constantly and lower your fire so it does not scorch. Cook roux until it looks a little darker than peanut butter. Add chopped veggies, lower your fire to low and cook until veggies are partially caramelized. It will look like a nice cocoa color at this point.This really needs to be done on the stovetop so you can have more control over it. If you burn or scorch this, throw it away and start over, it’s the most important part of gumbo and the least expensive to throw out if need be. Move pot to the BGE that has been pre-heated to about 350. Add your fresh and smoked sausages in the pot and cook them for about 20 minutes. Add stock and water and cook until it starts to boil around the edges of pot. Add chicken and cook for about 1 hour or until meat is cooked. Adjust seasonings to your taste. Add green onions and parsley. Skim off any oil that may have surfaced. Greasy gumbo is not too appetizing. Serve in large bowls with white rice. A side of baked sweet potato or potato salad with crusty french bread is a must. Using this recipe for the roux, you have the basics, from here you can make seafood gumbo, shrimp and okra, duck and andoouille, really any combinations work. It is even common in South Louisiana to mix meats like chicken, sausage, shrimp, and oysters.

RajunCajun

Whatever you do, try to stick to a roux based gumbo.  Unless that is you prefer the creole gumbo woth tomato base.  And don’t forget the trinity and a cooking hen always goes better in gumbo.  Just make sure you cook it long enough.  Cest bon✌️

GoldenQ

I always double the roux to get more flavor

GoldenQ

Be very careful when making the roux to not burn it.  It will take at least 30 mins and stir often.

RajunCajun

Try making the roux in the microwave.  You start off with 2:1 flour:oil which pays off at the end as you have less oil to skim out.

TideEggHead

The bge website jambalaya recipe isn't bad, I have used it as a base. I also like to use emeril's seafood gumbo recipe as a starting point. Then I just add what ever meat I feel like and change out the broths accordingly. I've never had okra in jambalaya. For either dish we always add in some smoked sausage on top of everything else.

Oh and french bread as a side but we mostly just stick to rice.

Carolina Q

Not so much a recipe as a religion. Jambalaya, 2:45 / Gumbo, 21:12
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5XXU47q9js

RockyTopDW

This is from Besh Big Easy by John Besh.  You’d be hard pressed to find a better one.

RajunCajun

RockyTopDW said:

This is from Besh Big Easy by John Besh.  You’d be hard pressed to find a better one.

There’s that tomato I mentioned.  Creole vs cajun?  😄

KiterTodd

This Jamabalaya recipe is awesome.

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cajun-chicken-and-sausage-jambalaya-recipe-1953599

It's from the old Bobby Flay throwdown show.  In this case, he lost, and the guy who one was some award winning New Orleans chef and this was his authentic recipe.  I've made it tons of times.  I have the recipe cut in half for small groups, but the portions as shown work great for a crowd.

For GUMBO I like the Chicken and Smoked Sausage recipe from Emeril's Real and Rustic cook book.  I make more roux than he says and add a lot more stock.  But it's a solid gumbo and you can mix up the meats however you want.  But you need some smoked sausage in there.  (it can be tarro, smoked turkey sausage, a chopped up smoked pork chop, whatever... you just need that flavoring)

RajunCajun

FanOfFanboys said:

wife's birthday is this weekend. cooking for 13-15 people. with the cool weather I am thinking gumbo or jambalaya 

I have never made either, I think the difference is mainly rice cooked with or added after?

I want okra, shrimp, chicken, andouille sausage, all in it

also thinking about cornread in the cast iron but what are traditional sides to go with this?

going to have a bloody mary bar for drinks, needs ideas for dessert too

thanks!

Let us know how it turned out.  Nothing goes better with gumbo than a good potato salad.  Cest bon oui!!!

Dyal_SC

Emeril’s recipe has been my go to. Made it several times in the wok in the BGE. 

dmourati

I've got you covered on the Jambalaya:

https://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1221121/old-school-chicken-and-sausage-jambalaya

thetrim

One must drink beer when making a proper roux.  Mise en place requires you to have several cold beers within close enough proximity that you can grab additional beers and open them without a break in stirring.

dmourati

Made Jambalaya again tonight. This recipe is amazing. It’s got a little heat but not too much. 

FanOfFanboys

so a few thoughts

I made the roux tonight along with, what I will call, stock (trinity + pope, chicken stock, etc)

I got some locally made sausage I will smoke tomorrow, reheat the "stock", add the sausage and okra, and 5ish minutes prior to eating I'll add shrimp

gumbo is frustrating. infinite variations. so many other recipes have a fairly consistent base to build on. not gumbo

I am surprised beans are not in gumbo. thought about that while grocery shopping

roux was not as scary as expected though one thing confuses me: making it in a cast iron pan is popular but so is using a metal whisk. that sounds...like a bad idea?

I added thyme. I think I ruined it. Up until the thyme I was CRAZY HAPPY with what I had done. Then I added thyme. Now, it smells and tastes like thyme. My only regret

I added 1lb of chopped andouille sausage and some chopped green onion and other stuff. It'll simmer for a while longer, I'll take off to cool, warm back up tomorrow.

 Making cornbread from scratch, have wine, a blood mary bar, and then hope everyone enjoys. really, hope the wife enjoys

but gumbo is overwhelming. any cajuns in Columbia, SC want to come to hang out one weekend and cook?

tz666

Try these out, I season more to taste but this will get quantities

GaryLange

Here is the recipe that I use and it is a recipe that can be Jambalaya or Pastalaya. It is very good if I do say so myself and the wife love my Jambalaya.

Jambalaya

 

Ingredients

3/4 Lbs. - Boneless Skinless Chicken Thigh Meat - Chopped 

3/4 Lbs. - Manda (or your favorite) smoked Pork Sausage - Sliced 

3/4 Lbs. - Boneless Boston Butt Pork - Cubed

 

3/4 Lbs. Onions - Chopped 

2 - Stalks of Celery - Chopped 

1 - Small Bell Peppers (Green, Red, or Yellow) - Chopped 

1/2 - Bunch of Green Onions (Shallots) - Chopped 

1/4 Cup - Parsley Flakes 

1/2 - Tablespoons of Sweet Basil 

1-1/2 - Bay Leaves 

1-1/2 - Tablespoons of Fresh Garlic - Minced 

1 - 14oz. Can of Delmonte Cajun Recipe Stewed Tomatoes

2-Cups - Rice 

3 Cups – Water

Or for Pastalaya

1-1/2lbs Spaghetti

4-1/2 cups Water

 

Dash of your Favorite Hot Sauce (Crystal or Tobasco)

Dash of Black Pepper

Dash of Cayenne Pepper 

Dash of Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning

1 tbls - Garlic Powder

1 tbls - Worcestershire Sauce

1 tbls - A1 Steak Sauce

Brown the chicken sprinkled with Tony's seasonings then remove from pot. Brown pork first, then boil down with some water till tender (about 30 minutes) and most of the water has reduced. Add sausage to pork and brown for about 10 minutes on medium heat while constantly stirring. Next add onions, bell pepper, celery, Cajun recipe, bay leaves, basil, parsley flakes, fresh garlic, and dash of hot sauce. Let this cook on medium heat while carefully stirring to prevent sticking until onions are browned. Vegetables will make extra water. When cooked thoroughly and vegetables are wilted, add the water (3 cups) and return chicken to the pot.  Season the mixture with pepper, garlic powder, Worcestershire, A1 and Tony's. Remember that rice will absorb the seasonings, so make sure the water tastes just a little more salty and peppery than you would like. Next, raise the heat to medium high so water starts boiling. Put rice into mixture. When all the rice has absorbed most of the water, lower heat to medium low and add the green onions. Stir carefully; place lid on pot for 3 minutes. Next lift the lid, stir pot completely then replace the lid. Lower heat to very, very low and cook covered for 15 minutes.

Finally, turn the heat off, do not remove the lid, and let sit for 30 minutes. After this, lift the lid, stir the pot over, and your dish is ready to serve…………………………..Enjoy !!!

Note: A cast iron pots works best.   Serves 8.