Worship, Wiggles, and Whimsy: My Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

I decided the other day to make my husband a nice dinner. :) He has been dying for some gumbo, so I figured I should make him some since he IS the most wonderful husband in the world, AND he just got a new job. :) So here is my recipe.

I would just like to point out, though, that this is just how I make MY gumbo. There are HUNDREDS of different ways to make this. The only thing that must must MUST be in a gumbo to make it a "real gumbo," is roux. Roux is a flour and oil mixture that is cooked on the stove (or in your oven depending on your recipe) until the flour and oil mixture is a little darker than you want your gravy or juice to be. Roux is used in stew, gumbo, etoufée, fricassée, and many other cajun dishes. The recipe for roux below can be doubled or tripled or whatever depending on how much you want to make or save. :) Just keep the proportions the same.

Roux (For Gumbo)

Ingredients:

1 cup flour
1 cup oil

Directions:

1) Mix oil and flour together in sauce pan.

2) Cook on medium heat until milk chocolate color. Stir constantly.

3) Use all in gumbo (or whatever) or store in ziploc or other container in freezer until needed.

FAQs (Or rather the Questions I called my mom to answer for me the first time I made this):

-Is it supposed to bubble like that?
A: While cooking it yes. When it stops bubbling as much is when it starts to brown. You are basically frying the flour until its the color you want your roux.

-Is it supposed to look kinda chunky?
A: Yes.

-My arm hurts. :(
A: Suck it up or make it in the oven. xD Gumbo is worth this bit of effort! I promise!

-What color should my roux be if I want to make an etoufée or something?
A: Lighter than this one. Dark roux are usually used for gumbo or stew. Light roux is for etoufée. :)

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

(FYI: I NEVER usually measure. This is all approximate. If there seems to be too much or too little of something, add it or take it away. xD Sorry!)

Ingredients:

1/2 -1 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2-3/4 yellow onion, chopped
5 cloves of garlic, minced
2-3 chicken breasts, chopped
2-3 links of sausage, chopped
Roux (see above)
6 cups water (approximately)
Seasonings to taste:
Season-all
Garlic powder
Cayenne

Directions:

1) Saute veggies. :)

2) Add water and roux. Let come to boil.

3) Add sausage. Let cook for a bit. Add chicken. I usually put the raw chicken and uncooked sausage in the water itself, but you can put precooked meat in this too. :) Let come to boil again and then bring to simmer. Let cook on low for a while until it's magical. While it does this, make some rice. :D

4) Add seasonings. When completed, turn off heat and let sit for a minute. Skim grease off of the top. Serve on rice with crackers, filé, or whatever you want! :D