Chicken Gumbo with Collard Greens

Photo attached below.

This is actually very good and keeps well in fridge and freezer. If you like gumbo and collards (separately), give it a try. It is much better than it sounds. Promise.

This recipe began its life as a vegan gumbo which received a 5star rating on About.com where it appeared. I like gumbo, and I was looking for something different to do with an extra bunch of collards, so I decided to give it a try - even though I figured it would probably be somewhere between boring and just plain awful. Initially, I wasn't too impressed, so I started working on it.

As I worked, I made a few changes (because the original vegan version was pretty bland and forgettable). Clearly, it's no longer vegan. The final result was really quite delicious, and the leftovers got even better every day they sat in the fridge letting the flavors mingle, so I decided to post the recipe here in case someone else might like to give it a try. Seriously, it really is much better than it looks/sounds.

Note: the ingredients here are based on what I used; however, you can use more chicken if desired and/or any combination of meat. Other meats typically used in gumbo include sausage (especially smoked) and shrimp and other seafood. Also, the original vegan recipe called for kidney beans. Although not usually seen in gumbo, I used them and decided I liked the texture and taste they provided; however, you can leave them out if desired.

I made mine in a crock pot. Below I give both the crock pot method I used and the original stove top instructions.

Ingredients:

1 med stalk or bunch collard greens
1 1/2 cups chopped okra
chicken broth or bullion, about 6cups (I used ham Better Than Bullion)
16oz can diced tomatoes
16oz can kidney beans
a few chunks ham, 3-6oz or as desired
1/2 chicken breast
2 onions, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
**1 tsp file powder (optional) also known as file gumbo and gumbo file
sugar, salt, garlic salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper (ground or flakes) to taste
enough roux to achieve desired thickness (see below for ingredients/recipe)
2 cups rice, pre-cooked
liquid smoke to taste

** for additional information on file powder and why it is considered optional here, see Post #8331439 below, the response to hemlady's question.

Note: I list the following items as optional because, while they were part of the original recipe and while they would probably compliment the dish, I did not have them on hand and thus did not use them in mine. In lieu of garlic and oregano, I used Adobo seasoning (for salt) which contains salt, garlic, and oregano.

Optional:
4 stalks celery, chopped
1/4 cup hot sauce
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves

Roux:
You can use your own favorite roux or one of the following.
The original recipe called for 1/4 c oil & 1/4 c flour to be mixed and then heated and browned in a skilled or small pot until red-brown in color before adding to the gumbo (at the time stated in recipe).
I didn't want to use that much oil, so I mixed 1/2 c flour and 1/2 c water (I like a thicker gumbo) together with a whisk. I didn't brown it. I just stirred it into the gumbo (at the time stated) and heated the gumbo until thickened. This worked fine and gave me a lower fat version.

Crock Pot Method:
This is the method I used. It's easier and came out great.

Put everything in the crockpot except chicken, roux (or flour and oil), okra, kidney beans, rice, and liquid smoke. Add broth. At this time, start with about 1/2t salt, 2 T sugar, and a dash of cayenne pepper or flakes. These quantities will be adjusted later. Cook on low for 10hrs.

Steam chicken in salted water (I used Adobo for salt) until tender. Cool. Remove from bone, chop, and add to gumbo. Add beans, file powder, and okra. Stir in roux. Cook an additional hour on low. If you used bay leaf, remove at this time.

Adjust seasoning. Start with salt, adjust to taste. Add cayenne pepper to taste, but be careful with this especially if using pepper flakes as it sometimes takes a while for the full heat to develop. It's better to use too little than too much as you can always add more. With salt and heat adjusted, now add sugar 1T at a time as needed to counter any bitterness from collards. The ones I used for this were probably the bitterest I've ever tasted, but when all of the seasonings were adjusted and allowed to mingle, it came out wonderful.

Add liquid smoke last and adjust to taste, or serve with liquid smoke allowing diners to use as desired.

The original recipe said to stir in rice at this time (last). I skipped this step and served mine over rice. I knew there would be leftovers, and I didn't want the rice to swell and get over cooked.

Stove Top Method:
In a large soup pot, boil the greens (and ham) in two cups water for about ten minutes. Cover and allow to steam for 5 to 10 more minutes. Reserve the cooking water.

In a separate small pot, whisk together the 1/4 cup oil and flour over low heat to form a roux, stirring continuously for about 10 to 15 minutes. Once it turns a dark reddish brown, remove from the heat and set aside.

In a large soup or stock pot, sautee the onions, bell pepper, celery and tomatoes for a few minutes in the 2 tablespoons of oil, until just soft. Reduce the heat and add the hot sauce, file powder, cayenne, thyme, oregano, parsley and garlic and cook, stirring for one or two more minutes.

Add the four and oil roux and the vegetable broth and stir well to combine. Add the cooking water from the collard greens and the bay leaves. Bring to a simmer, and allow to cook for 15 minutes.

If using chicken, steam separately in water with salt, covered, until cooked through. Cool. Remove from bone. Chop.

Add the collard greens, okra, kidney beans, chicken, and rice and cook for 5 more minutes. Remove bay leaves before serving.

Vegan Method:
The original recipe was vegan. To return to the vegan dish, simply omit the ham, chicken, and liquid smoke from the ingredients list, substitute vegetable stock for chicken broth, and cook by either the crock pot or stove top methods listed above.

Edited to add that there is a photo below and again later to make file powder an optional ingredient.

This message was edited Jan 25, 2011 1:47 PM

This message was edited Jan 26, 2011 1:11 PM