Chicken Andouille Seafood Gumbo

Instructions

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1. 1 If using chicken breast, butterfly or cut in half horizontally to make it thinner and cut down on cooking time.
2. 2 Season chicken lightly with salt and black pepper.
3. 3 Heat 3 tablespoons vegetable oil in a cast iron skillet. Cook chicken until lightly browned, remove from heat, and set aside to cool. It will finish cooking in the hot gumbo broth.
4. 4 Place the andouille sausage in the same skillet flat, and cook until lightly charred. (I do this because I like a little charring on the sausage, but you can skip this step).
5. 5 Using a Dutch oven on medium to low heat, heat 1 cup vegetable oil. Be very careful not to scorch or burn the oil. Once oil is hot, slowly whisk in 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour.
6. 6 Continue whisking or stirring flour and oil mixture until your desired color. This is the roux and is the most important part of making a good pot of gumbo. I prefer a very dark chocolate color roux, which requires constant stirring for about 35 to 40 minutes.
7. 7 Once the roux has reached the color you prefer, stir in onions, celery, and bell peppers (the Trinity). Add 2 tablespoons Cajun spices. It will be thick; continue to stir for 10 to 12 minutes until vegetables begin to soften.
8. 8 Slowly pour in broth; pour a little, stir a little, and keep repeating until all broth has been added to the pot.
9. 9 Turn heat down to medium-low, add 2 bay leaves and cover, and allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Stir and taste for flavor; add 1 tablespoon more Cajun spice if needed.
10. 10 Meanwhile, pull chicken into shreds or cut chicken into bite-sized chunks. Add chicken to the pot, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
11. 11 Stir in andouille sausage; cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
12. 12 Add shrimp and crawfish tails to the pot. Stir, cover, and simmer until shrimp is opaque, about 3 minutes.
13. 13 Turn heat off and allow gumbo to sit, covered, for 10 minutes. Remove bay leaves and serve with a side of rice.