Green Gumbo Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup peanut oil, lard or other vegetable oil
• 1 cup flour
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning (see below)
• 1 ham hock (optional)
• 10 cups water
• 3 pounds assorted greens (i.e. kale, collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, spinach, chard, parsley, dandelion greens, beet greens), chopped (about 14 cups)
• Salt
• 1 pound smoked andouille sausage (optional)
• File powder to taste (optional)

Cajun Spice Blend

• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp sweet paprika

Directions

1 create the concoction: begin the gumbo by creating a roux, which can add tons of flavor and thicken the gumbo. Heat the cup of oil or lard (both square measure ancient concoction ingredients) over medium heat for a moment or 2 then stir within the flour. combine therefore there aren't any lumps.
Cook the concoction over medium-low heat till it's the colour of chocolate. it's your selection however dark you let your concoction go. The darker it's, the better, however once the concoction gets dark it will burn simply, therefore you want to stir perpetually and keep and eye on that.

2 Heat water to a simmer: whereas the concoction is preparation, bring the ten cups of water to a simmer.

3 Add onions, celery, sweet pepper, then garlic to concoction: once the roux is dark enough, combine within the sliced onions, celery and sweet pepper and switch the warmth to medium. Let this cook, stirring sometimes, till the vegetables soften. Add the garlic and cook another 1-2 minutes.

4 Add bay leaves, spice, hot water: Add the bay leaves, the Acadian spice and slowly stir within the predicament. The concoction can seize up initially, however keep stirring and it'll all close in an exceedingly satiny broth.

5 Add leg, greens, cowl and simmer: Add the leg and every one the greens. style for salt, however bear in mind the leg are going to be salty, therefore let the broth be a touch under-salted for currently. If you wish to feature a lot of Acadian spice, do so now. cowl the pot and simmer gently for one hour and quarter-hour.

6 take away meat from leg bones, chop and come to pot: Check the leg. If the meat is worsening the bone, remove it, discard the bones, chop the meat and come it to the pot. If the hock isn't prepared, keep cookery the gumbo; ham hocks do not continually cook at an equivalent rate.

7 Add andouille sausage: Once the hock is prepared, add the andouille sausage and cook for one more quarter-hour.