November 18, 2013

Shrimp Gumbo





Okay this is the food i cooked yesterday. I have never cooked gumbo before but some how i felt like the food i eat all the time," rice" and some curry looking food. Surprisingly it was very different in every way as it didn't use the normal spices i am used too, and its the first time i heard "file" powder, the key ingredients for the dish. It is the herb powder which is used to thicken the texture of the dish while cooking or before serving the food. I google some ingredients, and finally came up  with my own.After all cooking don't need to be exactly like it is written. My friend was asking the recipe, so now writing for her. .

Yield : 6 people

Time: 3 hours.

Ingredients:

Roux
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup all purpose flour

1 pound kielbasa sausage (diced)
1 chicken breast (diced)
1 pound shrimp
1 finely chopped medium size onion
1 cup finely chopped celery
1 cup finely chopped bell peppers
2 tablespoon file powder
8 ounces tomato sauce
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoon salt
8 cups water

Directions:

1. In the medium heat, cook the sausage in iron skillet until it turns brown. Remove the sausage in a bowl. In the same pan cook the chicken breast until it turns golden brown. After that remove it from the pan.

2. In the same pan prepare the roux by pouring the oil, pour the flour and whisk it constantly. Make sure the heat is in medium low in order to avoid burn. It should be constantly stirred until it reach dark brown. It takes around 30 minutes.

3. When the roux is dark brown enough, add chopped onion, bell pepper, and celery. Cook the vegetables until it becomes tender.

4.Meanwhile in a large pot boil 8 cups of water, pour the roux with vegetables to the pot. Add tomato sauce, file powder,black pepper and salt to the pot. Cook it in a medium heat for 15 minutes. Add chicken and sausage to the pot. Cook it for 30 minutes. At last add shrimp and cook it for 15 minutes. By the end the consistency of the gumbo should be thick.  Serve it with rice.Enjoy!