Ham and Chicken Gumbo

By slmorgan13

Ingredients

• 1 large (2 lb) stewing chicken
• 1 1/2 lb smoked ham
• 1/3 lb bacon
• 2 cans (16 oz) tomatoes
• 2 cans (16 oz) cut okra
• 1 1/2 cups onion; chopped
• 2 cups long-grained rice; uncooked
• 2 cloves (0.2 oz) garlic; finely minced
• 4 cups water
• 2 tsp salt

Details

Servings 12

Preparation

Step 1

This recipe is a Hauser favorite for festive occasions, especially good with Mom's brisket. The gumbo can be prepared in a casserole a day in advance and baked the day of the party. It doesn't require watching.

Two days in advance put chicken in kettle with 4 cups water and 2 teaspoons salt. Bring to a boil, lower heat and cook until tender -- about 1 1/2 hours -- or pressure cook at 15 psi for 22 minutes. Take chicken from bones, cut breast into thin slices and cut the rest into bite-size chunks. Put bones back in broth and cook half hour or so to make broth richer. Strain, cool and store in cold place. The same day wash 2 cups long-grained rice through 6 waters, strain in colander and let stand overnight to dry. If rice is wet, the grains stick together and it is difficult to distribute them evenly over the layers.

Now we are ready to fill the casserole. Strain okra: put tomatoes in a bowl, chop into small pieces and add 2 large cloves garlic, finely minced; cut ham into bite-size pieces; cut bacon into slivers and chop onion to make 1 1/2 cups. Use a 4 quart casserole. This will be a four-layer proposition, so you will use approximately one-fourth of each ingredient for each layer, but save some okra and tomato for the top to make it look pretty. The sequence will be rice, bacon, tomato, chicken, okra, onion, and ham. Sprinkle each tomato layer with freshly ground black pepper, but don't use and salt. The ham, bacon, and chicken broth will provide enough salt. When finished the casserole should be filled to about 3/4 inch from top. Remove congealed fat from chicken broth and pour 3 cups broth into casserole and cover.

The gumbo will require about 2 hours of baking in a hot (425 F) oven. When cooking time is almost up, remove cover, taste to see if rice is tender and add a little more broth if needed. The consistency should not be at all runny, but it should be moist. Keep hot on a heating device or in a barely turned on oven.