Ingredients

1 chicken, cut up
Garlic powder
Cayenne pepper
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. chopped bell pepper
1 c. chopped celery
1 1/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
Vegetable oil
300 Chicken Recipes
7 c. chicken stock
1/2 lb. Andoville sausage or Polish kielbasa in 1/4" cubes
1 tsp. minced garlic
2 c. okra (optional)
Hot cooked rice

Preparation

Remove excess fat from chicken pieces. Rub on garlic powder and cayenne. Let stand 30 minutes. In a bowl combine onions, pepper and celery. Set aside. Combine flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne in a plastic bag. Add chicken pieces and shake. Reserve 1/2 cup flour. In a heavy skillet heat 1-inch oil to very hot. Fry chicken until brown (5-8 minute side).

Drain on paper towels. Pour cooled oil into glass measuring cup. Scrape pan bottom and return 1/2 cup oil to the pan. Place pan over heat; whisk in remaining 1/2 cup flour.

Cook; whisk constantly until roux is red brown (3-4 minutes). Don't scorch. Remove from heat and add vegetables. Cook until vegetables are soft. Scrape pan bottom. Place stock in large Dutch oven.

Bring to boil. Add roux mixture tablespoons at a time. Reduce heat to simmer; stir in Andoville sausage and minced garlic. Simmer 45 minutes.

Bone cooked chicken; cut meat into 1/2 inch chunks. Stir in chicken. As a main course, serve 1/3 cup rice in soup bowl with 1 1/4 cups gumbo.

Rice cooking tip

Cooked rice will increase in volume by 300% of the original raw rice. So if you're cooking one cup of rice, make sure that your pot can hold at least four cups, preferably five. Otherwise you could end up with a mess as the water spills all over the kitchen top.