Chicken and Andouille Smoked Sausage Gumbo - Polish Kielbasa

Cooked this soup the other day, and it's the second time I made it. First time was 10 years ago and I can't remember much of how it turned out only that I never made it again, so that tells you something.  This one was quiet a bit different than what I remember, and from all reports from my family, was very good and should be cooked again.  The inspiration for this Gumbo came from Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen.  

Ingredients
3-4 pounds of boneless chicken thighs
Salt
Garlic Powder
Cayenne
1 Yellow Onion Diced
1 Red Bell Pepper Diced
3-4 Stalks of Celery Diced
Flour
Salt, Garlic Powder, Cayenne
Vegetable Oil for Frying
Chicken Stock (Probably 7-8 cups worth)
Garlic
1 pound of Polish Kielbasa. I use Hillshire Farms.

I'm a huge fan of Polska Kielbasa. My mother used it all the time and I love it.  Not many people I know eat it though, but once they taste it in my food they can't get enough.  I use in my famous Jambalaya as well.  Great stuff.

Here is how to cook this great Gumbo:

Start by  seasoning the chicken as you see fit.  We suggest salt, pepper, cayenne, garlic powder, but it doesn't matter.  Then dredge in flour that has also been heavily seasoned.  Flour should be orange in color!  Then fry in the oil till done, about 5 minutes per side.  Remove and drain on paper towels.

Now the core of the gumbo is the ROUX.  If you want to spend some time online looking on how to make a roux, I would think that was a good idea. I'll give you a basic idea here:  Drain off all the oil but leave the crumbs and bits in the pan.  Pour 1/2 a cup of oil back into the pan, and heat it till it's freaking super hot!  Then slowly whisk in (be careful, very hot and scorching) 1/2 cup of flour.  Keep whisking until roux is dark red brown, then add the diced vegetables. Be careful it doesn't burn here.  I've burned it before, so you have to start over if you screw this up. 

Then cook the vegetables, 5 minutes.  In a separate pot, heat the chicken stock (I made mine using a pressure cooker via the Modernist Cuisine method, which provided amazing flavor. I think there is a recipe for it somewhere on this site.  Let me look.  Nope.  But there is this:  Brown Pork Stock.  That will teach you the basics.  I just put a lot of chicken legs into a pot, filled it with water, added onions, celery, and pressured cooked it for 2 hours.  Amazing stock! And the chicken meat from the leg was great in the Gumbo.

Anyway, heat the stock to a boil, then add by the spoonful the roux.  When that's done, chop up the chicken and add it to the pot, add the sausage (chopped up) and garlic, then simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.  There you go, you have gumbo.  Salt and Pepper it to taste.

One day I should make a study of Gumbo and cook a lot of different versions.  But for now, this was great and eaten heartily by everyone. I poured it over white rice.