Sometimes you just get tired of “same same” as is the slang here in Dubai. I certainly was. I hate fabricating chicken (this is the Steward, not the Chef) and so I usually cook whole chicken- you guessed it-whole! But since we moved we have been cooking on a little 2-burner hot plate until we get our stove and I didn’t have an oven to char my bird. So what on earth do you do when you have a chicken and dont know what to do with it? Make gumbo !!! As this is low carb, it doesn’t have the roux that is typical in the authentic Cajun dish. You can make it after browning your chicken if you wish, but we modified for a low carb, diabetic-friendly dish. Here is the process in pictures…
Mise en place: Thinly sliced ginger, spring onions, tomatoes, allspice, jalapenos, lots of garlic. (Thyme added towards the end).
Add some olive oil and a pat of buttah* … well maybe this was more than a “pat..”
Saute all in pot until cooked nicely…
Add chicken, then salt and pepper to taste. Brown on both sides of each peace. Add 1 cup hot water, reduce heat and simmer until cooked.
While the chicken is cooking, chop your okra as well as any other vegetable you will be serving. Add okras and thyme to the chicken and stir. Cook for a few more minutes then relish! This is perfect with Cauliflower “Rice.”
*CHEF’S NOTE: The oil increases the burning point of the butter so it doesn’t burn as quickly and the butter flavours the oil.
Another delicious looking dish 🙂
Do you add the cauliflower and broccoli to the gumbo or as a side?
MaryAnn the cauliflower was for Cauliflower “Rice” and the broccoli also a side dish. This is the perfect way to use up your extra okra (lady fingers). This makes a thick gravy and ideally, you serve a LOT of gravy with the meat and it is eaten out of a bowl with a spoon. So you can place the Cauliflowe Rice on the bottom of the bowl and pour the delicious gravy and meat over it.
I can’t resist all those healthy, colorful veggies and spicy ingredients. Wonderful!
Kristi
Thanks so much Kristi! That is EXACTLY the point! Thanks for coming by and do come by at anytime.
Look so tasty….. 🙂
Thanks! It is! Please try it and come back and let us know because it is so easy and quick!
tami | May 31, 2011 at 4:53 pm | Reply
I have been eyeing this chicken gumbo recipe for awhile now but all the factors have not been able to align themselves until recently. I finally got the time, okra and chicken in the same space and gave it a go. I had no jalapenos so I used a local hot red pepper (only 1 and it did quite a bit of damage). My husband who thinks chicken should always have the baked of stewed look…wasn’t very thrilled when he saw it but absolutely loved it….so much so that he took ALL the leftovers to work…will try it again and serve it up with some boiled green figs and cucumber salad…can’t wait…thanks Lij and Kari.
This is absolutely WONDERFUL NEWS! We are happy that we helped you to score a goal in the kitchen AND win you and picky chicken eater hubby! Grinning from ear to ear! Also very thrilled to hear that the sides were all complex carbs and not the traditional white rice!
I’m sorry you’re going to have to call this something different. It looks delicious but it is not gumbo. Having been taught how to make this dish in the kitchens of Louisiana, it is not something the Cajuns would recognise. You might get away with it in New Orleans but not around the Cajun heartland Lafayette. Sorry to be a purist.