Tips for a large quick gumbo?

[Salty nurse]

So I've been asked to cook a large gumbo for a fundraiser in late October and I have a couple of questions. Have any of you ever precooked a large roux and added the veggies the night before? There is a time constraint issue so that's why I'm thinking of making that mixture the night before. I thinking of doing that and making a chicken bone stock the night before and letting both the stock and roux/veggies come to room temp then adding them to my pot with browned chicken and sausage. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

[meaux fishing]

whenever I am making gumbo for a big crowd I just buy pre made roux. I just look for the darkest one on the shelf. Then I cook dowm my onions and stuff and add the roux and cook it for a few more minutes so it gets a little darker and mixes good with the veggies. One time I made a gumbo for 100 people two weeks ahead of time and froze it in gallon ziplock bags then just reheated it

[Matt G]

Savoie's store bought roux and boneless chicken. Just start cooking earlier......... It gives you more time to drink!

[latravcha]

No problem cooking the roux a few days before. Just put it in the pot and heat it up before you add the water. If not it can seperate. When I make a roux I make one bigger than I need and put it in the fridge for later use.

[mr crab]

I would just make the whole thing the night before. Always better the next day any way

[jchief]

Originally Posted by mr crab

I would just make the whole thing the night before. Always better the next day any way

I agree.

[Salty nurse]

That's for the replies and advice, that's what I love about this site

[swamp snorkler]

You don't even need to brown your chickens, go to the local grocery store and buy 6 plain rotisserie chickens ( you may have to pre-order them) debone them and put them in your gumbo.

Here's a thread I made last year.....

The Roux (Cooking/BBQ/Recipes): Gumbo - SaltyCajun.com

The Roux (Cooking/BBQ/Recipes): Gumbo - SaltyCajun.com

Here's what we had in it.....

SaltyCajun.com - View Single Post - Gumbo

SaltyCajun.com - View Single Post - Gumbo

We ended up with a lot left over..... probably a little less than half the pot, so if you can do an 80 quart pot for 100 people it will be more than enough.



As far as Roux goes, my mom makes enough roux to fill a quart mason jar. Uses what she needs and puts the rest in the fridge, it last a month in there without issue. My wife does the same thing and we never had a problem but we do use it up fairly quick.

One more tip, one time i was using my wok to cook some stir fry, I went a little to long with the onions and they browned really quick! now, when I'm in a hurry I use a wok to brown my onions. Just need to make sure you stir them constantly and don't take your eyes off them. You can brown 2 onions in under 10 minutes.

[DannyI]

I make gumbo for large crowds all the time. Use Savoies roux, plenty trinity, and I use the chicken broth from SAMS ( comes in a plastic jar as a paste, does excellant ). Prep it all the day before & season to taste. On day to serve, heat broth till hot, then add boneless, skinless, cut up breast & thighs from SAMS cut into bite size and seasoned & sausage cut to bite size. Ive learned if you dont cut to bite size, you run out of meat. Also, once you add the meat, do not stir to much or the chicken will break down to string. Use 2 to 1 ratio of dark meat to white meat, gives better taste. I also add my filet to gumbo while meat is cooking. I do mine in a large crawfish pot on a burner, watch so you don't overheat and scorch your broth and meat.