My Grandma (nanny), is actually from Baltimore, Maryland. I'm unsure how she came to be such a good cajun cook, other than just living in Louisiana for so long, she learned her way around a gumbo pot.
Most of my family is from South East Texas and Louisiana. So Boudin, Jambalaya, Crawfish Etouffee, and of course Chicken and Sausage Gumbo, were staples in all the Hawkins and Casto households. I have to admit though, we perfected a pretty basic gumbo. Things like shrimp and okra, that can be found in other traditional gumbos, just wouldn't have their place in mine. That of course is a personal preference. Shrimp, crab, okra, anything else you like in your gumbo can be added. The more in the pot, the merrier (take that statement with a grain of salt. Many thing DO NOT belong in gumbo).
When I say "gumbo pot" I do mean a specific pot for gumbo. My family is crazy, so we always had one pot that was just for gumbo. Always an extremely large pot that had been used so many times, the bottom was worn from a fork scraping the bottom when making a Roux. When I moved out on my own, I inherited my moms old gumbo pot. Now that I have my own, that pot lives in the kids playroom and often I find them pretending to stir up soups and stews in it. So cute!
For this recipe, you can either make you're own Roux or use a store bought one. My family is biased and only uses Karys Roux. A dark Roux is best for a flavorful gumbo. If you're making your Roux and can't accomplish a dark enough color, don't panic, you'll just need to add more seasoning and let it simmer for longer to let the flavors really develop.
Let me talk about my meat selections for gumbo, chicken thighs and smoked sausage. Boneless, skinless, chicken thighs are the traditional cut of chicken used in gumbo. Chicken thighs really are the perfect piece of meat to use in a gumbo. It stays moist and flavorful. If you use bone-in, the meat falls right off the bone. Mouth watering, just thinking about it!
Smoked sausage is also the traditional sausage to use in a gumbo.
Gumbo is similar to soup or stew. So while it doesn't need to be served over rice, you're really missing out if you don't. French bread and potato salad are also great things to pair gumbo.
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