Food to Take Your Soul to the Other Side...
"Authentic" New Orleans Style Gumbo
Let's give a hand to Lauren Allen for her take on this hearty, heartwarming Soulaani recipe! (She is indeed a WW, but that just means this should be hella beginner friendly. 🤭)
INGREDIENTS
For the Roux:
1 cup all-purpose flour, a little more may be needed
2/3 cup oil (vegetable or canola oil)
For the Gumbo:
1 bunch celery, , diced, leaves and all
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
1 bunch fresh chopped parsley, finely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic
1-2 Tablespoons Cajun seasoning *
8-10 cups chicken broth, *you can add a little chicken bouillon paste to enhance the flavor of your chicken broth
12 ounce package andouille sausages, sliced into 'coins' (substitute Polska Kielbasa if you can't find a good Andouille)
Meat from 1 Rotisserie Chicken*
2 cups Shrimp, uncooked or pre-cooked
Hot cooked rice, for serving
INSTRUCTIONS
Make the Roux*: In a large, heavy bottom stock pot combine flour and oil. Cook on medium-low heat, stirring constantly for 30-45 minutes. This part takes patience--when it's finished it should be as dark as chocolate and have a soft, "cookie dough" like consistency. Be careful not to let it burn! Feel free to add a little more flour or oil as needed to reach this consistency.
Brown the sausage. In a separate skillet on medium-high heat place the sausage slices in one layer in the pan. Brown them well on one side (2-3 minutes) and then use a fork to flip each over onto the other side to brown. Remove to a plate.
Cook the vegetables in broth. Add ½ cup of the chicken broth to the hot skillet that had the sausage to deglaze the pan. Pour the broth and drippings into your large soup pot.
Add remaining 5 ½ cups of chicken broth. Add veggies, parsley, garlic and roux to the pot and stir well.
Bring to a boil over medium heat and boil for 5-7 minutes, or until the vegetables are slightly tender. (Skim off any foam that may rise to the top of the pot.) Stir in cajun seasoning, to taste. Add uncooked shrimp, if using and cook 2 minutes.
Add meat. Add chicken, sausage, and pre-cooked shrimp, if using.
Taste and serve. At this point taste it and add more seasonings to your liking--salt, pepper, chicken bullion paste, garlic, more Joe's stuff or more chicken broth--until you reach the perfect flavor. Serve warm over rice. (Tastes even better the next day!)
If you're new to soul food and looking for the simplified hook-up, find more recipes like this at: tastesbetterfromscratch.com
Easy One-Pan Jambalaya
Another Soulaani-inspired dish from Miss Lauren Allen!
INGREDIENTS
1 Tablespoon oil, (vegetable or canola oil)
1 pound andouille sausage*, , cut into ¼ inch thick slices
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, , cut into bite-size pieces
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 Tablespoons butter
1 yellow or white onion, , chopped
4 green onions, , chopped
4 cloves garlic, , finely minced
3 ribs celery, , chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 1/2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional, add more for spice, if desired.
14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/4 cup long-grain white rice
INSTRUCTIONS
In a large skillet with a fitted lid, add the oil over medium high heat. Once hot, add the chicken and cook, flipping once or twice to brown on all sides (don't cook chicken through). Remove to a bowl. Add sausage and cook until browned on both sides. Add to the bowl with the chicken.
Reduce heat to medium and add butter and flour to the pan and stir well, scraping up any leftover browned bits from the pan. Add onion, garlic, celery, and bell peppers and sauté for a 3 minutes.
Add basil, cajun seasoning, diced tomatoes, salt and pepper and stir well to combine. Add chicken broth and rice bring mixture to a gentle boil. Add reserved meat to the pan. Reduce heat, cover pan with fitted lid and cook for 20 minutes.
Remove from heat, and rest with the lid on for 10 minutes. Then gently fluff with a fork and rest again for 5 minutes before serving.
Plenty more renditions of Black classics and general cuisines at: tastesbetterfromscratch.com if you're interested!
I'm imagining digging in two big bowls of both just floating down the Bayou in bliss...no shade, but ain't no frogs allowed on this fairytale ride 😬
Got some real authentic culinary creations to show-off? Beautiful, we'll be expecting a plate for #BLERDTOBER coming this October! What is #BLERDTOBER?
That's all we made for now, but don't worry; we'll be back before your tummy grumbles!
NB~💛
