This Authentic New Orleans Gumbo is made with a dark roux, vegetables, chicken, sausage, and shrimp, and served over rice. This is a beloved recipe shared with me by a native New Orleanian.
As you probably have gathered, I love making comfort food style recipes that use lots of fresh produce and real ingredients. This gumbo is no exception, and if you like this then I know you'll love Jambalaya and Instant Pot Red Beans and Rice.
We had a really fun neighbor growing up who was from New Orleans and made a fantastic homemade Gumbo! I'm so thankful my Mom took him up on his offer to teach her how to make a true, authentic Gumbo! Decades later it is a beloved recipe that has become a staple in our family and we have made it hundreds of times! It is definitely in my top favorite meals of all time! Nothing tastes better on a cold winter day.
Gumbo vs. jambalaya:
Jambalaya is primarily a rice dish (think paella) while gumbo is more of a stew that is thickened with a roux and made with chicken, sausage, and/or seafood. Both gumbo and jambalaya are often made with some similar meats and vegetables but the process of making them and flavors of the end result are completely different. Here is my favorite Jambalaya recipe!
The key to this recipe is the Roux!
A “roux” is made with two ingredients; flour and oil, and it's the key to any great gumbo recipe! The flour and oil are cooked and stirred together for about 30-45 minutes until it becomes dark brown almost like mud, or chocolate and the consistency of dough. The roux is what adds the deep, rich flavor to the gumbo, and it gives it it's thick texture. Make a good roux is a labor of love, but but one that totally pays off, and you can make it ahead of time!
Step-by-step Authentic Gumbo:
1. Make the roux. in a large pot, combine flour and oil and cook, stirring constantly on medium low heat. You have to be careful to stir it constantly, on medium low heat, so that you don't burn it. It's easy, but takes patience. The darker the roux, the richer the flavor!
2. Chop the veggies. When you're ready to make your gumbo, start by chopping celery, onions, bell pepper, parsley. I love the freshness from the green bell pepper, onion, celery and parsley. You can also add okra, if you want. Add it at the same time as the other vegetables.
3. Brown the sausage. Spread the sausage in a single layer on a hot, large skillet. Once browned, flip each one over individually, to make sure they all get nice and brown on both sides.
4. Add to large pot. Add chicken broth veggies, parsley, and roux to the pot and stir well. (Skim off any foam that may rise to the top of the pot.) Stir in cajun seasoning, to taste.
5. Add meat. Add chicken, sausage, and shrimp and taste. Add more seasonings to your liking–salt, pepper, chicken bullion paste, garlic, more Joe's stuff or more chicken broth–until you reach the perfect flavor.
6. Serve warm over hot cooked rice. This recipe tastes even better the next day as the flavors have a chance to blend. If you're really wanting to go all out, serve it with a side of homemade potato salad!
Make ahead, Storing and Freezing Instructions:
Store Gumbo covered in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. The roux can be made 3-5 days in advance, stored in a large resealable bag in the fridge.
This recipe makes quite a lot but it also freezes really well. To freeze, allow it to cool completely and store it in a freezer safe container (separate from the rice) for 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat on the stove or in the microwave.
Consider trying these similar recipes:
- One Pan Jambalaya
- Caribbean Jerk Chicken Bowls
- Mongolian Beef
- BBQ Ranch Grilled Chicken and Veggie Bowls
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Recipe
Authentic New Orleans Style Gumbo
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Roux:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour , heaping
- 2/3 cup oil (vegetable or canola oil)
For the Gumbo:
- 1 bunch celery , diced, leaves and all
- 1 green bell pepper , diced
- 1 large yellow onion , diced
- 1 bunch green onions , finely chopped
- 1 bunch fresh chopped parsley , finely chopped
- 2-3 cloves garlic
- 1-2 Tablespoons Cajun seasoning *
- 6-8 cups chicken broth *
- 12 ounce package andouille sausages , sliced into 'coins' (substitute Polska Kielbasa if you can't find a good Andouille)
- Meat from 1 Rotisserie Chicken*
- 2 cups Shrimp , pre cooked
- hot cooked rice for serving
Instructions
- Make the Roux*: In a large, heavy bottom stock pot combine flour and oil. Cook on medium-low heat, stirring constantly for 30-45 minutes. This part takes patience--when it's finished it should be as dark as chocolate and have a soft, "cookie dough" like consistency. Be careful not to let it burn! Feel free to add a little more flour or oil as needed to reach this consistency.
- Brown the sausage. In a separate skillet on medium-high heat place the sausage slices in one layer in the pan. Brown them well on one side (2-3 minutes) and then use a fork to flip each over onto the other side to brown. Remove to a plate.
- Cook the vegetables in broth. Add ½ cup of the chicken broth to the hot skillet that had the sausage to deglaze the pan. Pour the broth and drippings into your large soup pot.
- Add remaining 5 ½ cups of chicken broth. Add veggies, parsley, garlic and roux to the pot and stir well.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat and boil for 5-7 minutes, or until the vegetables are slightly tender. (Skim off any foam that may rise to the top of the pot.) Stir in cajun seasoning, to taste.
- Add meat. Add chicken, sausage, and shrimp.
- Taste and serve. At this point taste it and add more seasonings to your liking--salt, pepper, chicken bullion paste, garlic, more Joe's stuff or more chicken broth--until you reach the perfect flavor. Serve warm over rice. (Tastes even better the next day!)
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
I originally shared this recipe in 2015 but updated it in November 2017 and again in December 2019 with process photos and step-by-step instructions.
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This recipe was the bomb, my family loved it. They literally said this was the best thing I’ve ever made them. It was also so easy & quick to make as well. It didn’t have a bunch of ingredients. It was literally perfect. 1000/10 highly recommended.
This is one of my go to recipes. Yes, add your choice of things but as long as it’s followed Gumbo will be 10/10
I’m from California, raised in the Midwest, lived in the deep south and this is an awesome gumbo recipe. It came together in the time allotted, beautiful dark brown roux smooth as silk and looked like a page out of a cookbook when I was done. Added a few more seasonings, lump crab meat, and a little extra dash of chicken stock and buddy she’s singing. Thanks for a great recipe.
That’s a pretty good basic recipe.
There are a lot of regional variations in gumbo, even within Cajun Country and within New Orleans. And then there’s Low Country (Carolina) gumbo that has no roux and is nothing like what you find in south Louisiana (it’s more a tomato and okra based stew than a roux based soup).
The main difference I’ve noticed between Cajun gumbos (which this recipe appears to be closest to, there are plenty Cajuns in New Orleans) and Creole/New Orleans gumbos is the presence of tomato and the thickness of the gumbo. Cajuns make a soup. They add rice to it, but it’s still a soup and the texture is similar to something like a beef and vegetable soup – thin-ish, with bite sized bits of tasty things in it. Creole/New Orleans style tends to be thicker (more like a thick cream soup or pumpkin soup in density, not quite a stew, but definitely thicker than Cajuns make it) and is more likely to have tomatoes in it in some form. Low Country gumbos, aside from having no roux, tend to have a lot more vegetables (as opposed to aromatics) than Louisiana gumbos. I’ve seen them with things like squash and corn in them and I’ve never in my 45 years living in south Louisiana and New Orleans seen those things in a Louisiana gumbo.
Shrimp is not necessary, nor is okra, depending on what style you’re making. Common combinations for a Cajun gumbo would be duck & andouille, chicken & sausage, shrimp & sausage, shrimp & okra, and seafood (shrimp, oyster, & crab). There are areas of Cajun Country where people will put pretty much anything in gumbo, from boiled eggs to chicken livers to boulettes (a sort of Cajun meatball that can be made of pork or chicken or shrimp and is held together with mashed potato and egg) to balls of fresh Cajun sausage to whatever they trapped or shot in the swamp or field that day. You will also find in the south-central parts of Cajun Country, that Cajuns like to have gumbo with potato salad on the side, and many of them will even put a scoop in their gumbo. Not even kidding, it’s delicious. Just your basic potato, egg, mayo, & mustard style picnic potato salad.
A gumbo without okra requires file (pronounced fee-lay), which is dried ground sassafras leaves. So if you can’t buy file, you may be able to source ground sassafras from an organic herb supplier.
One thing I would advise for making the roux is to not use a nonstick pan or a nylon stirrer, or even a silicone one. You want a thick, flat-bottomed, even heating pan and a metal or wooden stirrer that can scrape every nook and cranny. After that it’s just a bit tedious and time consuming – you stand there stirring constantly over a low to low-medium flame until you get to just before the shade you want. To stop it cooking, throw your aromatics in (onions, celery, & peppers, but not the garlic or green onion, put the garlic in once it’s cooled some or your garlic will burn). This has the bonus effect of infusing the roux with the flavor of the aromatics, and adding a bit of caramelization, which adds flavor.
Different shades of roux are used for different things – the darker it is, the less it thickens, so if you want to make a thick Cajun style stew, you make a medium roux, which is more milk chocolate or dark peanut butter colored than the darker roux you would use for gumbo. And you do need to be careful not to burn it. A burnt roux makes the gumbo bitter, but if it’s not dark enough the gumbo won’t have much flavor. It’s a fine line and takes a some practice, which is why Cajuns put their kids stirring the roux as soon as they think they’re big enough – so they can learn.
If you find making roux difficult, you can find online a recipe for making it in the oven. That’s easier because it doesn’t require constant stirring. It’s not the traditional way, but it tastes the same. I believe the blog with the recipe is Deep South Dish.
And finally, re Cajun seasoning: it isn’t necessary. Cajun seasoning didn’t exist before the 1980’s, when it appeared as a product. One of the most popular brands, Slap Ya Mama! is made up of salt, black pepper, red pepper (cayenne), and garlic (probably in the form of garlic oil). That’s it. There are loads of different Cajun seasonings on grocery store shelves now, and none of them are the same. So you can easily make your own, or just season with salt, black and red peppers, and garlic. Bay leaf and thyme are also very common in gumbos, and Cajuns always have hot sauce or pickled peppers of some kind on the table to go with whatever they’re eating, including gumbo.
I think I’ve rambled enough, but hopefully that will help you and your readers. 🙂
Thanks so much for taking the time to explain the differences and what items do to the gumbo. Very helpful!
You also forgot that fresh uncooked shrimp is a must. After the shrimp is peeled, the hauls (shrimp heads and shells) are added to a pot of water and boiled and strained twice before using it as stock.
File’ is only added to each bowl of gumbo and not to the whole pot; adding it to the pot will spoil the Gumbo and that would be a waste of time and money.
I also added a recipe for Gumbo that is made by New Orleans residents which is also made at Dookey Chase restaurant:
Creole Gumbo also know as File’ Gumbo
Ingredients:
4 hard-shell crabs
1/2 pound chicken necks
1/2 pound smoked sausage
1/2 tablespoon paprika
1/2 pound chicken gizzard
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 tablespoons flour
1/2 pound Creole hot sausage
3 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 teaspoon ground thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound shrimp
1 cup chopped onion
4 quarts shrimp water
1 1/2 pounds smoked ham
1 tablespoon file’ powder
Directions:
Rinse the shells briefly under cold water and drain well. Add to cold water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 40 minutes. Strain the stock thoroughly in a china cap or strainer layered with cheesecloth. Cool the stock completely in an ice-water bath and use, refrigerate or freeze immediately.
Remove the Creole hot sausage from its casing (if purchased as links) and roll into small balls. Place crabs, hot sausage, smoked sausage cut into bite-sized pieces and gizzards in a 6-quart pot over medium heat. Cover and let cook in own fat and juices for 30 minutes. Heat oil in skillet and add flour to make roux. Stir constantly until very brown. Lower heat, add onions and cook over low heat until onions wilt. Pour onion mixture over meat in pot. Slowly add shrimp water, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil. Add chicken wings cut in half, necks skinned and cut, ham cubed, shrimp peeled and deveined, paprika, salt, garlic, parsley and thyme. Let simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat
Very true. You have one smart grandson.
So amazing!! My Mama lives in NOLA, but I’m always looking for recipes… and hints and secrets from others! Thank you for you rambling!!!
I truly enjoyed reading your comments. Your incite into the true taste of gumbo is very interesting and informative. It motivated me to try a more authentic recipe than I currently use . Thanks for your expertise.
Low and slow, always, when making roux. Add a little tomato paste to counteract the bitter burnt taste if it isn’t extremely burnt.
Was super excited to try this tonight, but I scorched the roux. Smelled like burnt popcorn about half way through, but I continued as I thought it may end up turning out OK in the end. The entire dish tastes scorched–will have to try making the roux again at a lower temp.
Not sure what kind of pot you used but heavy bottom pots help with not burning the roux if you have one 🙂
Like a dutch oven on the stove top or something like that.
I love this recipe! I was born and raised in southern Louisiana so I know a good gumbo when I see one. I am going to use your recipe the next time I make gumbo.
Thanks Amy! I’d love to hear how you like it!
Ok so I’ve been making this and was working out my arm stirring the roux but now I think I possibly burned it and I thought at first thats the smell but then I added it to the mixture and I think I ruined it and I’m so upset bc it did look delicious! Is there anything to do to fix this so I don’t have to throw it out! I swear this is why I never cook just but thought to be nice to the fam!
You can add some tomato paste. It should take the bitter burnt taste away, depending on how burnt it is. I have done this before and it worked. Better luck next time!
Thanks for the great tip!
I darkened my roux more, used 1/2 wine and 1/2 chicken broth, added shrimp and okra, Louisiana hot sauce and Tony Chacheres. It was awesome!
About how many does this feed?
It should feed at least 6
To double or triple for larger groups do you just double or triple all of the ingredients?
Yes, that will work. Enjoy!
I made this today for my family on this dreary, cold Indiana day. To say it was a hit would be an understatement! It is seriously the best gumbo I’ve ever eaten! We’ll be enjoying this recipe for years to come. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks so much Heather! It’s completely treasured in our house too so I’m happy to share it!
Can you make roux ahead and freeze it?
Yes! Ive done so and it works great!
This is very close to my family gumbo recipe passed down from my great grandma from South Louisiana. One thing you should try: experiment with getting the roux even darker–almost black, but be careful not to scorch it. To me, it makes the gumbo just a bit richer.
Exactly, South Louisiana for sure. Lafayette, Lake Charles, the like
You forgot the okra ? Is there a reason no okra goes in here?
Hi Annette, I don’t usually add Okra, but you’re welcome to–sounds yummy!
This gumbo is awesome. I used the rotisserie chicken carcus and bones to make broth. Just boil in pot of water with leftover chicken and skin and then strain before you add to gumbo pot. Buy a few cans of chicken broth just In case you need more. I also lightly stir fried shrimp in small amount of butter in the same pan I cooked the sausage in. I also deglazed pan with 1/2 c broth after I stir fried shrimp and added that to gumbo pot. Could not find Joes Cajun Seasoning so I used Zatarins and it worked great. Also I would suggest cutting up all veggies the day before to cut down on time. Rue is tricky so I would make it the day of after you cook shrimp and sausage….stirring it constantly with a wooden spoon is a trick I learned from my grandma.
I served this with garlic bread, fresh fruit salad and strawberry shortcake for dessert. Happy Fourth a Of July!!
Sounds wonderful! Love all of your adaptions. And Homemade broth is the way to go! I always buy a rotisserie chicken and do it that way as well 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing!
I’m from New Orleans and this is a nice recipe. There is no one way to cook gumbo, as we say , your Mama cooks it different from my Mama.
I like my veggie seasoning cooked down a bit more but that’s ok too. Thanks for sharing!
Adding okra is an old fashioned idea, my grandma did that. I think okra and tomatoes make it more of a creole gumbo.
Not exactly authentic but probably tastes great. The word, ‘gumbo’ means ‘okra’ in an African language, so the original Louisiana gumbo was an African dish named after the prominent ingredient. Really, try adding some. It thickens the soup and makes the flavor. I’m from above the lake (with decades in NOLA) and my mother taught me to add (horrors) a can of tomatoes. For me, the roux makes it a truly NOLA dish – a bit of adventure with hot oil, and the only way not to burn it is to make that whisk dance. La bonne vie!
I ALWAYS add okra ’cause I don’t like the stock to be too thin. The easy, year-round way is to buy a package of frozen sliced okra in the microwave for about 3 minutes, and dump it into the bacon fat. In a skillet (NOT cast-iron, which turns okra an ugly, ghastly black) I melt some bacon fat and dump in the defrosted, partly cooked okra. I cook the slices, stirring and mashing constantly to reduce the slices to seeds & fibers. This cooks the “slime” and turns it into thickener. It’s done when it stops “roping.” Then I stir in two TB tomato paste and combine it well before adding it to the pot. Continue according to these great instructions.
This is the way I make . Alsoit…Also my mother and probably , her mother, her mother’s mother. I’m from Louisiana. Are you?
Thank you for this response I definitely will be trying both of these.
There are 2 different types of gumbo. What this lady made was considered a file’ gumbo without okra. When you use okra that is cooked down to make your rue. Delish either way. Old Cajun river boat captain taught me how to make gumbo.
This wouldn’t be a file gumbo at all as there is no file in the recipe. There are many more than just two ways to make gumbo. Most gumbo that I know of is made by using roux as a thickening agent for improved flavor and mouth feel. Otherwise you’d use boiled okra or a ton of file (dried sassafras leaves that are then ground into a fine powder) the later produces file gumbo. I think everyone agrees that roux is by far the best route for flavor. Thanks for trying though.
I have often heard gumbo referred to as-Filet gumbo or Okra gumbo. The real magic of any gumbo is that you can put whatever you want into your pot and let the flavors combine. Some folks add filet during the cooking process while others sprinkle it on their serving bowl .
While roux is used the majority of the time there are many gumbos that do not require a roux. All delicious.
I am a chef from NOLA with cajun roots.
Love me some gumbo!
Agreed my friend?. I prefer a roux with okra cooked down. I let each individual add gumbo file’ if desired. I also add 2 small bottles of snow clam juice, this really enhances the flavor.
lol…ouch….
I add filet and okra, and a roux is a must. Certain satisfaction in a well done roux, that’s when I know it will be good. Cook frozen okra in bacon grease with a splash of vinegar. Doing it all one day makes it less fun, I agree with some prepping a day ahead. Use a BIG pot, it grows!!!
The acid from the vinegar keeps the okra from being too slimy. Folks who put tomatoes with their okra get the acid from the tomatoes. Something like lemon juice should work fine, too.
Toni: What recipe did he teach you to do?!
The addition of okra, tomatoes, and corn makes it Creole gumbo. Also a lighter roux is a distinguishing factor. Many outside of Louisiana don’t know this.
Tomatoes and corn aren’t additions to authentic New Orleans gumbo.
Sounds like a succotash
I meant the African word for okra is gumbo!! My grandson said at the age of 10, “how can it be gumbo if there is no okra”…out of the mouths of babes.
Okra is something that some people like in their gumbo and others do not it is just a personal thing. When I was growing up in the 60’s my Dad make gumbo a little different than most people, he put chicken, sometimes cornish hens instead, sausage, shrimp, oysters, whole crab bodies and the claws, he boiled the shrimp heads to get his liquid. He put file in his and no okra, to this day I have never found anyone who does their gumbo like my Dad it was the best. Dad is gone now and I still can remember the taste of his great gumbo. He was from Biloxi, Ms.