Chicken Gumbo

Adapted from Splendid Soups by James Peterson

(Serves 8)

• 1½ pounds fresh okra, cut into ¼-inch slices, or two 10-ounce packages of frozen okra
• 6 tablespoons melted bacon fat or vegetable oil
• 2 medium-size onions, finely chopped
• 1 celery rib, cut into ¼-inch cubes
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 red or green bell pepper, seeded and cut into ¼-inch cubes
• ¼ pound tasso or smoked ham, thinly sliced and cut into strips
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
• 6 medium-size tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 4-pound chicken, quartered
• Salt and black pepper
• 1 pound andouille sausage or smoked kielbasa, cut into ½-inch slices
• Tabasco sauce
• 1 cup rice, cooked

• 1. Using a 4-quart pot over medium heat, cook the okra in 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat or oil for about 15 minutes, until the okra is covered with a shiny glaze. Add the onions, celery, garlic, bell pepper, tasso or ham, and thyme leaves. Cook gently for 15 minutes more, until the onions are shiny and translucent. Add the tomatoes and the broth and cook at a bare simmer for 10 minutes more.
• 2. While the vegetable mixture is cooking, heat the remaining bacon fat or vegetable oil in a skillet. Season the chicken with salt and black pepper, to taste, and brown it for about 8 minutes on the skin side and 5 minutes on the flesh side. Drain off the fat and cover the chicken with the vegetable mixture. Add the sliced sausage.
• 3. Cook the chicken and the sausage at a gentle simmer for 15 minutes. Take out the chicken and let it cool. Remove and discard the skin, then remove the meat from the chicken and put it back into the soup. Season, to taste, with Tabasco.
• 4. Serve the soup in wide bowls, with a mound of rice in the center. If the gumbo is too thick, thin it with broth or water.

Nutrients per serving:
Calories: 555
Fat: 29g
Cholesterol: 21mg
Carbohydrate: 35g
Sodium: 1mg
Protein: 40g
Total dietary fiber: 5g

TIP: Once you make the gumbo base, you can easily expand the soup into something more elaborate by adding seafood or slices of smoked meats, such as duck or goose. Gumbo thickens if left overnight in the refrigerator, so you may need to thin it with broth or water if you’re reheating it the next day.

January & February 2007

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