Spicy chicken, shrimp and spicy sausage gumbo made with fresh or frozen okra, tomatoes, celery and chopped green Poblano chiles is the perfect weeknight dinner solution when you want to channel some cajun spirit.
Sometimes, I procrastinate. If you give me a hard deadline, I will always meet it, but when I don’t have that structure, I tend to put off even the most interesting of tasks.
For example: I made this chicken, shrimp and spicy sausage gumbo several weeks ago when the wintery weather necessitated sweaters, fireplaces and simmering pots of food on the stovetop. It’s only today, when the temperature reads 83 degrees F that I manage to post it. Even though most of you are probably focused on what kind of fish to grill and whether or not to buy ribeye or filet for the grill, gumbo is a great “cook on Sunday, eat all week” meal and it’s hearty and filling, without weighing you down.
I took a recipe from Epicurious and tweaked it with some different spices and the addition of spicy Andouille chicken sausage, but you could use pork sausage too, if you prefer the taste.
- 7 tablespoons canola oil, divided
- ¾ pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs
- 3-4 links Aidell's Spicy Andouille Sausage, sliced in half lengthwise, then cut into half-moon shapes
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups sliced fresh or frozen okra
- 2 cups chopped onion
- 1½ cups chopped seeded poblano chile
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 10 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 4 cups unsalted chicken stock
- 2 cups water
- 2 teaspoons ground red pepper
- 1¾ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can unsalted petite diced tomatoes, drained
- ¾ pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 (8.8-ounce) packages precooked brown rice (such as Uncle Ben's)
- ⅓ cup thinly sliced green onions
- Heat one tablespoon oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add sausage to pan and cook until heated through. Set aside.
- Add one more tablespoon olive oil, then add chicken; cook 2 minutes on each side. Remove from pan; let stand 10 minutes. Slice across the grain.
- Reduce heat to medium-low. Add remaining five tablespoons oil to pan. Stir in flour; cook 25 minutes, stirring frequently with a whisk until the color of melted semisweet chocolate. Stir in okra and next four ingredients. Increase heat to medium-high; cook three minutes. Stir in wine; cook two minutes. Add stock and next four ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 15 minutes. Add chicken and shrimp; cook three minutes. Stir in vinegar, black pepper, and rice; cook one minute. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Top with green onions and serve hot.

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