Plaidophile

My best cajun food yet.

Place 3-4 chicken breasts into a small pot, and cover them with water, a tablespoon of olive oil, and a tablespoon of kosher salt. Cover with a lid and bring to a boil, before reducing heat to medium.

Meanwhile, put 1/2 cup each of flour and oil into a large pot. Stir together until they're consistent, then put on medium heat, making a roux. Stir constantly until the roux thickens and darkens. Be very careful to not burn it. Remove it from the heat, and keep on stirring it until it stops bubbling.

Chop one celery and one onion (yellow or white), and stir them into the roux, which should still be piping hot. Add a tablespoon or two of minced garlic. Stir them until they stop bubbling, then add a can of chopped tomatoes, and a can of black eyed peas. Bring the heat back up until it's just simmering. Add a teaspoon of cayenne pepper, a easpoon of cumin, and a tablespoon each of basil, oregano, and thyme. Reduce heat and cover.

Slice a pound of andouille (or kielbasa or some other similar sausage, if andouille isn't available), and sautée it in olive oil. When nice and toasty, add it to the gumbo, but retain the drippings. Remove the (mostly-cooked) chicken from the water (but retain the water), chop it into bite-sized chunks, and fry it in the sausage drippings, grinding black pepper on top. Fry it until it's finished cooking and the meat turns slightly golden. Stir the chicken and broth into the gumbo.

Simmer the gumbo on medium-low heat for a couple of hours, and serve over rice (jasmine, if possible, preferrably steamed) and a nice warm hunk of rustic bread. Goes well with shiraz.