Okra Gumbo In Instant Pot Food

INSTANT POT GUMBO

Steps:

• Method 1 - Easy Oven Roux Method: Preheat oven to 375°F. Heat cast iron skillet over low heat. Add vegetable oil and flour to the cast iron skillet, mix well with a whisk. Place cast iron skillet on the middle rack of a 375°F oven for roughly 75 minutes - 90 minutes until dark brown. Whisk every 25 - 30 minutes. Use your whisk to scrape the bottom and sides as the roux progresses.
• Method 2 - Instant Pot Roux Method: Add vegetable oil and flour to inner pot and click "Saute" button. Stir constantly until dark brown (roughly 35 - 50 minutes). Don't stop stirring to avoid burning.*Pro Tip 1: Read Above Dark Roux Tips. Plan ahead and leave extra time for making the roux before you begin to cook the gumbo. *Pro Tip 2: Ensure to heat roux until deep brown (see above photo). This is critical for adding robust flavor and texture to the final gumbo dish.
• Prepare Pressure Cooker: Heat up your pressure cooker (Instant Pot: press Sauté button and click Adjust button to Sauté More function). Ensure your pot is as hot as it can be (Instant Pot: wait until indicator says HOT).
• Prepare Chicken Thighs: Pat dry the chicken thighs' skin with paper towels. Season with generous amount of kosher salt and ground black pepper.
• Brown Chicken Thighs & Andouille Sausage: Pour 1 tbsp (15ml) olive oil in pressure cooker. Ensure to coat oil over the whole bottom of the pot. Place 4 chicken thighs (skin side down) in Instant Pot. Do not overcrowd. Lightly season meat side with more kosher salt and ground black pepper. Brown the skin side (don't touch it for 4 minutes). Flip and brown the meat side for 1 ½ minute. Remove and set aside.Repeat above browning steps for the remaining 2 chicken thighs, and saute the sliced andouille sausage. Remove and set aside.
• Saute Veggies: Pour in the brown roux and add in diced onion. Saute for roughly 1 minute. Add in diced green pepper, diced celery, and minced garlic. Stir regularly for another 4 minutes.
• Add Spice: Add in 3 bay leaves, ½ - 1 tsp cayenne pepper, 1 tsp ground black pepper, 1 tsp smoked paprika, a pinch of dried thyme, and a pinch of dried oregano. Stir for another 1 minute until fragrant.
• Deglaze: Add in 1 cup of unsalted chicken stock and deglaze by scrubbing the flavorful brown bits off bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
• Pressure Cook Gumbo: Add 1 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, remaining unsalted chicken stock, browned chicken thighs and Andouille sausage. Give it a quick mix and layer the okra on top. Close lid and pressure cook at High Pressure for 7 minutes, then 15 minutes Natural Release. After 15 minutes, turn Venting Knob to Venting Position to release remaining pressure.Remove chicken thighs from Instant Pot and shred the meat. Discard the skin and bones. Add the shredded meat back into the Gumbo and give it a quick stir. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt (for reference, we added 4 more pinches of kosher salt) and cayenne pepper.
• Serve: Garnish Instant Pot Gumbo with chopped green onions and serve with hot white rice. If you are not using okra, you can thicken the Gumbo with file powder by serving it on the side.

OKRA GUMBO (IN INSTANT POT)

Steps:

• ROUX: Turn on Instant Pot, Saute setting, High, lid opened. Put flour in it and stir every 30 seconds or so. When it starts changing color, stir non-stop until it becomes dark as peanut butter. Add oil and stir some more.
• Add onion, celery and bell pepper. Saute for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add all remaining ingredients* and stir to combine. Cover the Instant Pot with a lid, set seal to "Sealing" and cook for 10 minutes on Manual setting. Release pressure quickly by turning valve to "Venting".
• Serve gumbo over cooked long grain rice.

INSTANT POT® CHICKEN AND SAUSAGE GUMBO

Steps:

• Turn on a multi-functional pressure cooker (such as Instant Pot®) and select Saute function. Add 1 tablespoon oil, chicken, and sausage to the pot and cook for 6 minutes. Remove meat with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add 1/2 cup oil and flour to the pot. Whisk until roux is the color of peanut butter, about 10 minutes. Add onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring continually to prevent burning, for 5 minutes. Turn pot off.
• Add broth, tomatoes, okra, black pepper, cayenne pepper, thyme, Creole seasoning, and Worcestershire sauce to the pot. Stir in cooked chicken and sausage. Close and lock the lid. Select high pressure according to manufacturer's instructions and set timer for 4 minutes. Allow 10 to 15 minutes for pressure to build.
• Release pressure carefully using the quick-release method according to manufacturer's instructions, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

OKRA GUMBO

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in garlic, onion, and green bell pepper, and saute until tender. Stir in okra, mushrooms, diced tomatoes and their liquid, tomato paste, file powder, bay leaves, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, 40 minutes.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Stirring constantly, add flour, and cook 2 to 5 minutes, until a golden brown roux has formed.
• Spoon the roux into the okra mixture, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, 5 to 10 minutes, until thickened.

TRADITIONAL CHICKEN GUMBO WITH OKRA

Steps:

• Prior to heating pot, chop all vegetables.
• To make the roux: Heat a large heavy bottomed stock pot over a medium high flame.
• Once hot, add the oil. Stir in the flour, reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring constantly until the color of the flour/oil mixture is somewhere between the color of coffee with cream and black coffee. Do not allow this to scorch or burn- if this happens start process over.
• Once the roux is cooked to a deep color, add the onions, garlic, celery, peppers, salt and pepper. Allow to cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes.
• Pour in the chicken broth and 6 cups of the water, stir. If desired, us all broth for the liquid and no water.
• Stir in the Creole Seasoning. NOTE- the homemade Creole Seasoning has no salt. If you use a purchased product, such as Tony Chachere's, there is salt in most products. Please observe and adjust seasoning to accomodate these differences.
• Allow to cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes. Taste broth and add additional salt as desired. If gumbo appears too thick at any point in the cooking, add more water.
• Add the chicken thighs to the pot. The thighs may be boneless/skinless, or remove the skin from whole thighs. Thigh meat will remain moist.
• Allow the chicken to cook for about 45 minutes. Remove chicken pieces from stock. Place on plate to allow to cool.
• Once you have removed the chicken, add the sliced okra. Allow to cook in the broth for about 30 minutes.
• After the chicken has cooled for about 30 minutes, remove meat from the bones, and dice the cooked meat. Add to the pot.
• Taste and adjust seasonings to taste. To add heat, you may use cayenne pepper. If you wish to season with salt and heat, Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning is a commonly used spice blend.
• Serve over cooked white rice- Uncle Ben's is most authentic.
• Recipe Notes: When storing leftovers, do not stir the rice into the gumbo. Keep rice and gumbo separate until ready to serve. If you add seafood to this gumbo, put it in at the very end of the cooking process- it only takes a few minutes for shrimp, crab, or oysters to cook. If you choose to add aliced andouille sausage or a couple hot links, put it in at the same time you add the okra.