Chicken and sausage gumbo is a Cajun style dish that is full of bold flavors and textures. This really easy gumbo recipe takes no time to make and it is so good.
Normally when I think of gumbo, I think of of shrimp gumbo which is delicious and very southern. For this recipe, I wanted to make a gumbo that uses ingredients that are more readily available like chicken and sausage.
I have access to shrimp at my local store but I like to cook shrimp the day I buy it so it doesn’t make a great meal that I can shop for ahead of time. Chicken and andouille sausage gumbo however does!
The history of gumbo:
I am sure you have heard of gumbo and have probably had it before as well. It is actually from the southern part of the U.S., specifically Louisiana and it is a dish that has evolved over the years to what it is today, a thick stew made up of the Cajun holy trinity (red peppers, onions and celery), a thickener (usually flour) and meats (sausage, chicken, seafood, etc.)
Many people believe that this was originally a cajun dish but we now know that this was a dish that was made by Africans who were the slaves in the southern U.S. The exact ingredients they used were a bit different but today’s gumbo is an evolved version of the African “Gombo”.
Gumbo is now deeply rooted in Louisiana and southern culture and is in fact the state food of Louisiana. Today, we can enjoy gumbo from our own home thanks to the internet and online recipes!
It is easy to make a very hearty.
Here are the ingredients you will need to make this chicken and andouille sausage gumbo:
- Boneless chicken breast
- Andouille sausage
- Bacon
- Red pepper
- Celery
- Onion
- Garlic
- Flour
- Chicken stock
- Cajun seasoning (recipe below)
- White rice (I prefer basmati but a short grain rice is fine and traditional)
The first thing you want to do before you make the gumbo is to make the cajun seasoning. If you already have cajun seasoning then by all means go ahead and use that. If you prefer to buy the cajun seasoning, that is fine too. No one is judging 🙂
If you want to make your own Cajun seasoning, here is what you will need:
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Sweet paprika
- Cayenne Pepper
- Salt
- Pepper
- Oregano
I have included the recipe below for the seasoning!
Once you have made your seasoning, you can have this meal ready to eat in 30 minutes. It does not take that long to cook and the flour in the recipe creates a very fast thick stew.
Here is what the steps look like to make this gumbo recipe:
First you want to cook your bacon until crispy and remove that from the pan leaving the bacon fat in the pan.
You saute your veggies in the bacon fat until almost browned. Once they are cooked, you add your Andouille sausage to to pot and cook that for a few minutes.
Now you take your cut up chicken pieces and dredge them in your flour and then add them to your pot to brown on the outside and to cook out the rawness of the flour.
Last step is you will add your chicken stock and scrape the brown bits off the bottom of your pan. Add your seasonings and then let it all simmer for 15-20 minutes.
What to serve with chicken and sausage gumbo:
The traditional way of eating gumbo is to take a mound of white rice and place that in the center of a shallow but wide individual serving bowl. The gumbo is ladled around the mound of rice leaving some of the rice exposed (at the top of the mound) and some of it will absorb that gumbo base.
This chicken and andouille gumbo is a great meal to make for celebrating Mardi Gras ( a traditional dish for that), when you want a little taste of southern food or just because!
If you love cajun inspired food you will love this dish. Another great recipe to try is my cajun chicken pasta! It is not traditional but the cajun flavors in this creamy pasta dish are out of this world delicious.
Chicken and Andouille Gumbo
Ingredients
Gumbo
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces.
- 1 1b Andouille sausage, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 3.5 cups chicken stock
- 4 strips of bacon
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 red pepper
- 1 stalk celery
- 1 small onion
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp cajun seasoning (recipe below)
- salt and pepper to taste
Cajun Seasoning
- 4 tbsp sweet paprika
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tbsp onion powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- In a large heavy bottom pot add your olive oil and heat over medium heat.
- Once pot is heated add your bacon strips and cooked until brown and crispy. Remove and set aside.
- Dice your onions, garlic, red pepper and celery and add to your pot.
- Saute until all the veggies are golden brown.
- While your vegetables are cooking, add your cut up chicken to a bowl and add your flour. Mix the chicken in the flour until well coated.
- Now add your chicken and the extra flour to your pot of cooked vegetables and cook until the chicken is lightly browned.
- Next add your cajun seasoning and mix that evenly into the vegetables and chicken cooking for 1 minute.
- Next add your chicken stock and scrape all the brown bits at the bottom of your pot.
- Add your cut up pieces of andouille sausage.
- Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Serve with white rice mounded in the center of an individual serving bowl and the gumbo ladled around the rice.
- Take your reserved bacon and crumble it. Sprinkle the bacon on top of your bowl of gumbo before serving.
