Quick Fix Gumbo Archives - Life's A Tomato

I love gumbo. It’s my number one go-to Cajun dish. And to really make a great gumbo you need to devote some time for it to really be something special. Give me a cold winter’s day and I won’t hesitate to take that time. But sometimes, I just don’t have the luxury. That’s where my quick fix gumbo comes in. All the flavors of a full-blown gumbo, but it takes a lot less time. This feels like a gumbo, tastes like a gumbo, and even looks like a gumbo.

My criteria for ‘quick fix’ is simple. They can’t be too complicated. The recipes use mostly items from the pantry or fridge that I almost always have on hand. If there is any preparation involved it has to minimal and can only use tools or gadgets that most people have on hand. And last, and most importantly, it has to be tasty good. There’s no point of doing anything if you don’t enjoy it in the end!

Skimp On Time, Not Flavor

The two major timesavers for this quick fix gumbo are using rotisserie chicken instead of cooking your own, and using a pre-made roux from the store. Making a roux takes a little time to do right, and it is worth the time… when you have the time. When you don’t, grab a jar of almost-as-good roux from the store. Our local grocery store has a (sadly, small) southern foods section. That’s where I found ready-to-use roux.

Some Prep Involved

This dish does come close to violating my ‘not much prep required’ criteria for being quick fix. There are a number of vegetables that need to be chopped. Nothing complicated, but it does not a little time. You can shortcut that if your grocery store (like mine) has containers of pre-cut vegetables. I can usually find bell peppers and onions already prepared if I need them. That just leaves the celery to prepare and not much at that.

365 by Whole Foods Market, Organic Chicken Stock…

32 fl oz organic chicken stock
Made from slow-simmered organic free-range chicken

Also try my low-carb gumbo.

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5 from 1 vote

Quick Fix Gumbo

All the flavors of a full-blown gumbo, but in a lot less time.

Course Main

Cuisine Cajun

Keyword gumbo, quick fix

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 2

Total Time 2 15

Servings

Calories 426kcal

Author Mike

Equipment

Dutch Oven

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large yellow onions chopped, divided
8 stalks celery chopped, divided
1 large green bell pepper chopped, divided
1 small red bell pepper chopped, divided
1 yellow bell pepper chopped, divided
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon garlic minced
4 teaspoons Kosher salt
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons gumbo file powder
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
2 14 ounce andouille sausage cut into 1/4" rounds
12 cups chicken stock
1 large rotisserie chicken shredded
1 cup pre-made roux or more, to taste
4 cups rice cooked

Instructions

Add oil to a large Dutch oven or stock pot over medium-high heat.
Add half each of the onion, celery, peppers and the bay leaves. Saute until just tender.
Add the remaining onion, celery and peppers and saute another 3 minutes.
Add all of the seasonings, the sausage, stock and chicken.
Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.
Stir in the roux in small amounts. Make sure it dissolves completely. Taste to see if you need to add more roux.
Cover and simmer another 30 minutes.
Add cooked rice and warm thoroughly.
Serve.