Celebrate Fat Tuesday with Chef Andrae Bopp’s Gumbo Recipe

Fat Tuesday is a big deal in this house. Marcus is from New Orleans and this year I wanted to cook something special for it. It’s been quite some time since I’ve made gumbo, and since Marcus didn’t have a go-to recipe he loved, I turned to an expert for his recipe, my friend Chef Andrae Bopp. Chef Bopp is the culinary rockstar that brought Walla Walla Andrae’s Kitchen for the last ten years (called the “best restaurant in a working gas station in the country” by Food & Wine). He and his food have also been covered by The New York Times, The Travel Channel, USA Today, and Travel + Leisure (to name a few).

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup flour
• 3 large onions, chopped
• 3 large red bell peppers, chopped
• 5 celery stalks, chopped
• 8 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 3/4 cups of chopped fresh thyme
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes with juice
• 2 8-ounce bottles of clam juice
• 2 cups of chicken stock
• 2 pounds of Belcampo Organic Andouille Sausage (don’t forget to use “StephForrer10” at checkout for 10% off your Belcampo order!)
• 1.5 pounds chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 16-ounce package of sliced frozen okra
• minced fresh Italian parsley

The Roux

Start by making your roux: add your oil to the pan on medium heat, let it warm (2-3 minutes) and then stir in your flour. Stir constantly as the roux cooks, it can take anywhere from 20-30 minutes for your roux to develop, depending on the heat of your stove and pan. Here is a very thorough video on making a roux that I found super helpful.

Directions

• Once your roux is ready: Add chopped onions, chopped bell peppers, and chopped celery and cook until onions are soft and brown, stirring frequently about 20-30 minutes.
• Add garlic and cayenne and stir for 2 minutes.
• Add wine, thyme, and bay leaves; bring to boil, stirring occasionally.
• Add tomatoes with juice, clam juice, broth, sausage, and chicken; simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 15-20 minutes.
• Add okra and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes.
• Garnish with parsley and serve with rice.