Creamy Chicken Gumbo

Grandpa Harry's Note:

--A New Orleans specialty. What starts off as a wonderful creme of chicken soup, ends up as a fantastic gumbo with the addition of rice, creole seasonings, ham, and a touch of white wine!

• Total Time: 1 hrs 20 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 1 1/3 cups white rice
• 1 (3 lb) whole chickens, cut into pieces
• 7 cups canned or fresh chicken stock
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup cooked or canned ham, diced into bite size pieces
• 3 tablespoons Tabasco sauce or 3 tablespoons your favorite hot sauce
• 3/4 teaspoon white pepper
• 1 teaspoon creole seasoning or 1 teaspoon file powder or 1 teaspoon your favorite seasoning salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 cups milk
• 3/4 cup white wine

Directions:

1. Cook the white rice according to package directions, but remove from heat about 15 minutes before it's done.
2. Drain the excess liquid, and set aside.
3. In a stock pot over high heat, combine the chicken and the fresh or canned chicken stock.
4. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to low.
5. Simmer for 40 minutes, or until chicken is cooked and tender.
6. Remove chicken from the pot, and allow it to cool.
7. Reserve liquid stock from pot for later.
8. When chicken is cool, remove the meat from the bones, cut into bite size pieces, and reserve.
9. Discard the fat and the bones.
10. In the same stock pot over medium heat, saute the celery and onion in the a tablespoon of butter for 5 minutes.
11. Add the ham, and cover.
12. Cook for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until everything is tender.
13. Return the liquid stock in the stock pot, and add the partially cooked white rice.
14. Stir in the Tabasco, white pepper and any creole seasoned salt; simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.
15. Meanwhile, melt the rest of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
16. Stir in the flour until smooth.
17. Whisk in the milk, and continue cooking until mixture is bubbly and thick.
18. Add some of the stock mixture to the milk mixture, continuing to stir, then stir all of the milk mixture into the stock mixture.
19. Mix in the reserved chicken meat and the white wine.
20. Allow this to heat through for about 15 minutes.

Reviews

[Metal_chef _Jeff]

OOOOOOOOWWEEEEEEE! DIS here is some goood soup I gauranteeee!I added a lil more spice and a can of diced tomato. Along side of my boiled crawdads dis is a homerun!

[Buster's friend]

OMG! Elegant with panache! Came together quickly with precooked rice & chicken poached in stock. Good thing b/c we were chilled after surf fishing until dusk. Used Frank's Hot Sauce augmented with Tobasco Habanero & a blend of thyme, garlic powder, paprika & Lowry's seasoned salt for the creole seasoning. Used 1/2 the butter, flour & milk but soup thickened nicely. Definately will make again for guests but this pot is ours! Thank you Grandpa Harry for a "something special" recipe that is a keeper! edit - next time I will serve the soup "the first time" before adding the roux then make up 1/4 recipe of the roux for "the second serving" that way getting 2 texturally very diifernet & yum soups out of 1 batch.

[highcotton]

Loved it! Next time I will add lots more hot sauce and creaole seasoning.