Duck Gumbo
- Level: Intermediate
- Yield: 8 to 12 servings
- Total: 8 hr
- Prep: 1 hr
- Inactive: 3 hr
- Cook: 4 hr
Ingredients
Broth:
5 to 6 ducks
2 large yellow onions, diced
2 large bell peppers, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 bay leaves
Water, to cover the ducks
Roux:
1/2 pound bacon
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
Vegetable oil (if needed)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Gumbo:
Reserved duck broth
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 large bell pepper, chopped
2 (15-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, drained
Salt and pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
2 tablespoons mango-tamarind spicy Jamaican pepper sauce (recommended: Pick-a-Peppa brand)
1 large package smoked pork sausage, diced and browned
Reserved chopped duck meat
1/2 cup finely chopped reserved bacon
1 package frozen okra, cooked to package directions, drained
1 pound raw shrimp, cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons gumbo file
White rice and French bread, as accompaniment
Directions
- Broth:
- To a large stockpot, add the ducks, onions, bell peppers, garlic, bouillon, salt, pepper, bay leaves, and enough water to cover the ducks. Bring to a boil and cook the ducks for about 1 hour, until tender. Remove ducks and pull the breast meat from the bones and chop them into small pieces - use only the breast meat and discard the rest of the bird or save for another use. Strain the broth and save. Set aside the chopped duck breast and broth to use later.
- Roux:
- In a large, deep, black skillet or kettle, fry the bacon. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon, leaving the grease in the pan. To the hot bacon grease, slowly add the flour, if the mixture is of a paste consistency, add more bacon grease or oil until it's loose and easy to stir. Stirring constantly, flour-grease mixture should cook on medium heat until a dark caramel color is obtained. Add the salt and pepper and stir. As soon as the salt and pepper are stirred into the roux, add the remaining ingredients to make the gumbo.
- To the hot roux, add broth, then the onions, peppers and tomatoes. Add the seasonings. Then add sausage, duck, bacon pieces and okra. Next add the shrimp, cook until shrimp is pink. Finally, add the gumbo file and stir. Let gumbo simmer for about 1 hour. The longer it simmers, the better it gets.
- Serve over white rice with hot French bread