Tonight I made a New Orleans classic — Martha’s Chicken and Andouille Gumbo from page 172.
I should tell you that Jeff is The Gumbo King! Ever since he had a delicious bowl of gumbo at Emeril Lagasse’s Orlando restaurant about 10 years ago, he’s been obsessed with making the perfect gumbo. This was my first time taking over as the gumbo chef in the family and Jeff leaves big shoes to fill in that department! So I’ll give you his review — he said it rivals his best gumbos! Success!!!
Martha’s recipe requires making a dark roux, which is not that easy because you need to keep it from burning and, like all roux, you need to keep it from becoming a clumpy mess. The trick to making a perfect roux is to never leave the pot or stop stirring it until it’s done! So what do you do if the phone rings? You ignore it and keep stirring the roux. How about if the doorbell rings? You ignore it and keep stirring the roux. You hear the sweet siren song of an ice cream truck right outside your door, beckoning you to run out and buy a giant soft serve cone with sprinkles? I know it takes a lot of will power but you must ignore it and keep stirring! You get the idea — the roux must be your only priority!
The only thing I added was a little bit of ocra on top that I deep fried in cornmeal for a little bit of textural contrast. This was a perfectly delicious taste of New Orleans and even my Gumbo King hubby agreed!
