I took yesterday off from work to cook.  That was the sole purpose of my day and I was in heaven.  I’ve shared often that my work family loves to eat.  In fact, everyone either loves to eat or loves to cook (or both).  Which makes for some great special occasion spreads.  Today we celebrated Mardi Gras with a giant pot of Chili Gumbo and a platter of Mardi Gras Wings.  It was a good day.

I was a bit nervous at the thought of making gumbo.  I had some true Cajuns to feed and by no means wanted to compete with what they grew up on.  That would require making roux, from ingredients not already in my pantry (fee-lee, fii-lee, fo)…which would inevitably require me to leave my house and my pj’s.  Remember, I took the day off to avoid such things.

So instead I first sought out a gumbo recipe that would utilize some of the pounds and pounds of Andouille sausage in my freezer.  Long story short, we helped rescue a Trader Joe’s freezer truck filled with bacon and sausage.  It was the least we could do.

So while looking for a recipe that didn’t require file powder, I stumbled upon this beauty for Chili Gumbo.  Great flavor combinations that came together easily.  I highly recommend this recipe, which got a thumbs up today from my work family.

Did I mention I was cooking to feed my entire work family?  The Chili Gumbo recipe listed below is doubled from the original and easily fed twenty people.

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Chili Gumbo

Prep Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 15 minutes minutes

Servings 20

Author adapted from Abbie Argersi via Food52

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 dried Guajillo chilis
• 1 dark beer
• 30 ounces Chicken Andouille Sausage or favorite
• 2 Tbl. olive oil
• 3 Tbl. ground cumin
• 2 lbs. ground beef
• 2 onions diced (about 4 cups)
• 4-5 jalapeno peppers diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 4 celery ribs diced (about 2 cups)
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 4 Tbl. chili powder
• 1 30- ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 14.5- ounce can diced tomatoes
• 3-4 cups beef broth
• 3 Tbl. red wine vinegar
• 3-4 Tbl. Cajun seasoning according to taste

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place flour in a baking dish. Bake for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until golden brown, stirring every 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, remove stems and seeds from dried peppers and chop them fine. Place in bowl and pour in beer. Set aside.
• In a large skillet place Andouille sausage in one-inch of water. Heat over medium heat, turning once until water evaporates. Remove sausage and slice them. Brown them in oil then remove from the pan. Add cumin to pan and toast for one minute before adding ground beef. Season beef with salt & pepper and brown. Remove from pan and reserve with Andouille.
• Add the onions to the pan and cook them for 5 minutes. Add in celery, jalapenos and garlic; cook mixture until just softened. Add the vegetable oil, toasted flour and chili powder; stir for 3-4 minutes.
• Add in diced tomatoes, chilis and beer, and cooked meats with their juices. Add 3 cups of beef broth, red wine vinegar and 3 Tbl. Cajun seasoning (or more to taste). Simmer for at least 30 minutes. If too thick, add additional cup of beef broth.
• Serve with cooked white rice, lime wedges, fresh cilantro, and Louisiana Hot Sauce

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