Gumbo..... it causes GumBelly :)

Tonight I made gumbo.... Ohhhh how I LOVE gumbo.
It really is one of the tastiest things and soooo satisfying to the soul.

This also means I found fresh Okra :) Yeeeeeeeee!
There are two ways I love to make okra; Deep fried in cornmeal batter or in Gumbo. You can see which recipe won this time.

If you have a chance to use fresh okra - do it, nothing beats it but if you can only find frozen, you will still crave this recipe.

Here is my version of Gumbo. This recipe takes bits and pieces from many. It's MY way and not traditional in technique, but it's darn good, so please give it a try.

Gumbo

1 lb chorizo
1/4 - 1/2 cup flour
2 medium onions chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 28oz can tomatoes (diced or whole) Juice and all
2 cups chicken stock
1 lb chicken thighs
3 bay leaves
1 T dried basil
1 1/2 cups chopped okra
1 lb shrimp, deveined and peeled  (whatever size you like)

Directions
1. Brown chorizo in large enamel coated pot on medium heat. Really brown it, make sure there are little crispy bits. Remove from pan and set aside, leaving all oil in pan.
2. Add flour to chorizo oil. You want to add enough so it's still fluid but has the texture of wet sand. Cook the flour and oil, stirring constantly, on medium heat until nicely browned. I aim for a caramel colour. This is your roux
3. Add the onions, celery and bell pepper to the roux (flour and oil mixture) and cook until the vegetables are softened, about 10 minutes (you can tell they are softened when the onions become translucent). Make sure to stir frequently as you don't want the vegetables and roux to brown much more.
4. Add the chicken stock and tomatoes (squish the tomatoes in your hand if using whole tomoates), dried basil and bay leaves. Stir scraping the bottom to get all those lovely brown bits. Bring everything back up to a simmer and cook on low for 45 minutes.
5. While the vegetables and roux are simmering and getting really yummy, cut the okra slicing it in 1 cm pieces. I remove the top of the okra, but that's up to you. Throw the okra in the pot and continue simmering for 30 minutes.
6. Cook your rice. I usually make 2 cups dried rice (4 cups water) for this recipe.
7. In the last 3-5 minutes, add the shrimp to the gumbo. Depending on the size of shrimp, you'll add them with more or less time to cook. Generally, 5 minutes for the Large sizes and less for smaller :)
8. If you want, throw some chopped parsley on top. :)

To serve, place a couple lately of gumbo at the bottom of a large bowl, put rice over gumbo and sprinkle with delicious chorizo bits and hot sauce to taste.