By Grocery List Plus Editorial Staff | Published on June 14, 2026
Serves 20
235 cal · 100 min
Ma Harper's Creole Gumbo
Recipe GLPRc4ec42cfcfa851
A authentic Creole gumbo featuring chicken, smoked sausage, and blue crabs simmered in a rich, dark roux-based broth seasoned with thyme, cayenne, and traditional Cajun spices. This hearty main course is served over rice and finished with gumbo filé powder.
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Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 pound chicken meat, light or dark, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 teaspoons oil
1 pound smoked or hot sausage, sliced into rounds
2 large onions, chopped
1 large bell pepper, chopped
1 head garlic, chopped
6 whole blue crabs, cleaned with back shell removed
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
5 ribs celery, chopped
3 small bay leaves
1 bunch green onions, chopped
3 quarts chicken or seafood stock
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
Cajun seasoning, to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Rice, for serving
Gumbo filé powder, for serving
Directions
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Spread the flour evenly in a baking pan and place it in the oven. Bake for about 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the flour turns a deep nutty brown color. Remove from the oven and sift through a fine strainer to break up any lumps. Set the browned flour aside.
Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces and cook, stirring often, until they are cooked through (internal temperature reaches 165°F), about 8–10 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pot and set it aside on a plate.
In the same pot with the drippings, add the sliced sausage and cook until it begins to brown and change color, about 5 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent sticking.
Add the chopped onions, bell pepper, and garlic to the pot. Cook, stirring regularly, until the onions become translucent and soften, about 5–7 minutes.
Place the cleaned crabs into the pot and cook, stirring gently, until they change color and begin to turn reddish, about 5 minutes.
Sprinkle the browned flour, thyme, cayenne pepper, chopped celery, and bay leaves into the pot. Stir well to combine, coating all the ingredients. Allow the mixture to cook together for 5 minutes, stirring often.
Slowly pour the stock into the pot while stirring to avoid lumps. Return the cooked chicken to the pot. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat.
Add the green onions and season the gumbo with salt, black pepper, and Cajun seasoning to taste. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the broth thickens and flavors blend.
Stir in the chopped fresh parsley. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.
Serve the gumbo in deep bowls over hot cooked rice. Top each serving with gumbo filé powder to taste.
Comments
This is an authentic gumbo that feeds a crowd well, but the 100-minute estimate glosses over the roux work—expect 130 to 150 minutes total, including browning the chicken and sausage properly and letting the roux darken enough. Blue crab is the main hurdle: Harris Teeter and Food Lion carry it, but fresh crab will run $15–$22 per pound and frozen crab half that; the seafood counter stop is built into this recipe. Cost per serving lands around $3.50–$4.00 depending on whether you use fresh or frozen crab, driven mostly by the protein mix. The gumbo filé powder and cajun seasoning are stocked at all major chains, and the rest—chicken stock, thyme, bay leaf, cayenne—are pantry staples in the South. This is a weekend dish that reheats beautifully and improves overnight, so it's not suited to a weeknight rush, but the payoff is a house-filling batch that holds its own for days.
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