Texas Ranch Gumbo Recipes

Steps:

• Prepare the vegetables. Remove sausage from the casings and crumble. Set aside.
• Season the diced chicken with 3-4 tablespoons of Creole Spice Mix, either homemade or a high-quality store-bought mix. Dredge the chicken in ½ cup all-purpose flour.
• In a large pot over medium-high heat, heat ½ cup of lard. When melted, add the andouille and slightly flatten to an even layer; brown on both sides, just cooking through. (Do not overstir, or meat will not sear.) Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon so oil remains in pan, and drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Set aside.Add the chicken to the hot pan. Allow the chicken to brown and cook through in two batches, being careful not to overstir, about 7 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside with the sausage.
• Roux: Turn the heat to low. Scrape food bits from the bottom of pan (also known as "fond") so they are loose in the melted fat. Add the remaining ½ cup lard and allow it to melt. Dust in the remaining ¾ cup flour in several small additions, whisking constantly. Simmer on low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon so roux does not stick, for 30-45 minutes, until the roux is the color of peanut butter.
• Raise the heat slightly. When the roux has just begun to bubble, add the onions and stir well to coat them. Then add the celery and bell pepper and cook for 5 minutes, stirring, to just soften. (The goal is to "stew," not sear.) Add the garlic. Slowly add the stock in several additions, stirring and scraping constantly to deglaze and mix well. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add the bay leaves and the filé, and stir. Simmer for 20-30 minutes, until "nappe consistency"-thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
• Add the chicken and sausage pieces and simmer.
• Heat a dry cast-iron skillet. Toss okra lightly in oil, then grill in the hot pan, stirring occasionally, until seared and aromatic. Remove, cool slightly, and chop into ½-inch pieces. Add to the pot and stir.
• Adjust seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Season with hot sauce, lemon, and some of the spice mix to taste. Serve with rice.
• Combine all the ingredients for the Creole Spice Mix in a bowl and mix well to combine. Set aside.

Steps:

• Trim excess fat from steaK; cut into 1-inch cubes.
• Combine flour, thyme, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish or pie pan; dredge meat in flour mixture.
• Heat butter and oil in a dutch oven; add meat; cook until browned on all sides.
• Remove meat, reserving drippings in pan; add onion and green peppers to pan; stir/saute until tender.
• Stir in mead and next 5 ingredients; cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours.
• Remove bay leaf and adjust seasonings to taste; serve over rice.

Steps:

• To make roux, heat the oil in heavy skillet until very hot. Add the flour a little at a time, stirring constantly, until it forms a paste. Lower heat and continue to stir until dark brown, do not burn
• Turn off heat and continue to stir until mixture stops bubbling.
• Fill large pot half full with water. Season the chicken with the garlic powder, black pepper, red pepper and salt. Add the chicken, basil, rosemary, green pepper, celery, onion, sausage, crab legs and roux to the pot. Bring to full boil, stirring constantly to keep roux from sticking to bottom.
• Reduce heat and simmer until the chicken is tender, about 2 1/2 hours. Add the shrimp, simmer about 30 minutes longer. Add the oysters and cook 5 minutes more. Serve with rice or crackers.

Steps:

• Start by making the roux. In a heavy bottomed pan, preferably a cast-iron skillet, melt the bacon fat and stir in the flour. It's important to keep stirring this until it turns a deep dark brown. Usually about 30 minutes. Also remember once it is brown to remove it from the burner and it will continue to cook as the pan is still really hot.
• For the gumbo: Melt the butter in a large pot. Add the celery, onions and green and red bell peppers. Let simmer for 5 minutes. Cut the hot links in 1/4-inch half-moons and add to the pot. Add the water, clam base, chili powder, thyme, oregano, garlic, paprika, cayenne, chicken base, hot sauce and bay leaf. Bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer. Let simmer for 30 minutes. Take 1 cup of the liquid and stir it into the still hot roux; it will expand to double the size. Add this to the gumbo and stir it in well bring it back to a boil. Once it has thickened, turn off the heat and stir in the okra and gumbo file. (At this point you have a nice base that you can add your choice of proteins to, anything from crawfish, shrimp, crab, chicken or a combination.)
• Serve in a bowl with steamed rice, soda crackers and Louisiana hot sauce.

Steps:

• Trim excess fat from steak; cut into 1 inch cubes. Combine flour, thyme, salt and pepper; dredge meat in flour mixture. Heat butter and oil in Dutch Oven; add meat and cook until browned on all sides. Remove meat, reserving drippings in Dutch Oven. Add onions and green pepper to reserved drippings; saute until tender. Stir in meat and remaining ingredients, except rice. Cover and simmer 1 &1/2 hours. Serve over rice.

Steps:

• Combine oil and flour in a large Dutch oven; cook over medium heat until roux is the color of a copper penny.
• Stir in celery, onion, green pepper and garlic; add parsley. Cook 45 minutes to 1 hour stirring occasionally.
• Fry okra in 2 T hot shortening until browned. Add to gumbo and stir well over low heat for a few minutes.
• At this stage, the mixture may be cooled, packaged and frozen or refrigerated for later use.
• Add next 12 ingredients; simmer 2 1/2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally.
• About 30 minutes before serving, add chicken, crabmeat and shrimp, simmer 30 minutes. Add oysters during.
• last 10 minutes of simmering period. Stir in molasses.
• Serve over hot rice.