Quail Gumbo
Ingredients:
1 lb. boneless, skinless quail breast
¾ – 1 lb. andouille sausage, ¼ inch slices
1 cup All-purpose flour
1 cup vegetable oil
1 lg. onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
3 ribs celery, chopped
1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 pkg. frozen cut okra (or fresh cut okra if available)
3 chicken bouillon cubes or chicken base
1 T. salt
2 T. black pepper
3 T. file powder
2 T. Louisiana Hot Sauce
1 T. red pepper
10 c. water (or homemade chicken stock and omit bouillon cubes)
6 cloves garlic
Directions:
⦁ Cut boneless qual breasts into bite-sized pieces.
⦁ Heat the oil and flour over medium-high heat in a large pot. Stir constantly (works best with a wire whisk) until the flour/oil mixture (the roux) is a medium brown color and has a nutty aroma. It will be the same color as peanut butter, so just get your jar of peanut butter out to evaluate the color. Don’t burn it! If it burns, start over because all of the gumbo will just taste burnt.
⦁ Add all the vegetables EXCEPT the okra and tomatoes. Cook for about 3 minutes.
⦁ Gradually stir in water, bouillon, tomatoes, meat and spices EXCEPT file powder. Simmer about 1 ½ hours.
⦁ Add okra and simmer just until okra is tender. Don’t keep cooking with okra or the okra will just cook away into the gumbo.
⦁ Skim any grease from the top with spoon. Turn off heat and add file powder. Stir well.
⦁ Serve over rice with some crusty French bread.