Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

Chicken:
1 1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
liberal sprinkles of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne
2/3 cup flour
1/2 cup bacon drippings or oil

Roux:
1 cup oil (after frying chicken--supplement, if neccessary)
1 cup all-purpose flour

Gumbo:
2 cups finely chopped green pepper
2 cups finely chopped onion
2 cups finely chopped cleery
1 cup finely chopped parsley
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 cups chicken stock
1/2 tsp. cumin seed, roasted and crushed
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. salt, if desired
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup tomato paste
8 drops Tabasco sauce
1 lb. smoked spiced sausage, sliced thinly on the diagonal
1 Tbs. filé
hot cooked white rice

Prep time: 5 hours
Yield: 8 servings

Chicken:
Trim fat from chicken. Place chicken on a baking sheet and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne. Let sit 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350º.

Place chicken pieces in a paper bag and add flour. Shake thoroughly to coat.

Heat fat or oil in a large skillet over medium heat until just smoking. Fry chicken until crisp and golden on the outside. Transfer to a glass baking dish. Bake at 350º for 20 to 30 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces.

Roux:
There should be about 1/2 cup of hot oil in the skillet in which the chicken was fried. Scrape loose the particles from the bottom. Add more oil to make 1 cup.

Over medium-low heat, slowly stir the 1 cup flour into the oil. The roux will be an off-white color and gradually change to a dark nut-brown. It must be stirred during the entire cooking period to prevent scorching or burning. Use a whisk or wooden spoon. The darker the roux becomes, the more taste it will impart. If the roux burns, discard it and start over.

Gumbo:
When the roux has cooked, stir in the green peppers, onions, celery, parsley, and garlic. Blend well.

Cover and cook over low heat--barely bubbling--for 1 hour. Stir frequently.

In a large stock pot, combine stock and contents of skillet. Stir to blend. Add cumin, pepper, salt, bay leaves, tomato paste, and Tabasco sauce.

Partially cover and simmer over low heat 1 hour.

While the gumbo is cooking, try out the sausage slices in a skillet to remove excess fat, about 20 minutes. Lift the pieces out of the skillet with a slotted spoon and add to the gumbo. Discard fat.

Thirty minutes before the gumbo is completely cooked, add the chicken. Taste for seasoning. Prepare white rice. Add filé.

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