My Famous Crockpot Gumbo

Since becoming a mother my Crockpot has become my trusted best friend. It allows me to create healthy meals for my family even when my schedule doesn’t allow for much meal time prep. During the school year my Crockpot is a staple to my menu planning and I utilize it a minimum of once a week. Over the past couple of years I have produced my famous Crockpot Gumbo for several friends and/or gatherings. I’ve had quite a few people ask for my recipe so I thought I would publish this recipe here on my blog for any of you that might want to try this one out. What I like most about this meal is its simplicity. The prep time is about ten minutes. This particular recipe calls for more vegetables than most gumbo recipes, but you would never know it in a blind taste test. The flavors blend so well I can never get enough of this one.

Ingredients:

2 Tb butter

2 Tb flour

1 green pepper

4 cloves garlic, diced or minced

1 onion, diced

2 carrots, diced

1 quart Chicken broth

2 Tb Cajun seasoning

1 smoked or Polish sausage (we prefer Polish in our house)

1 can diced tomatoes

2 cups diced okra (optional)

Recipe:

1. In a non-stick skillet, melt the butter. Add the flour and stir until the flour is golden brown. Add the pepper, garlic, onion, and carrots. Saute for one minute.

2. Add the mixture to a 4-quart slow cooker. Add the broth, seasoning, sausage, and tomatoes. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.

*3. Add the okra the last  hour of cooking if you should choose to add it. (I rarely do)

4. Serve over a bed of brown rice.

This recipe is quite mild, but if you want to turn up the heat on your gumbo you can substitute the green pepper for a hotter pepper of your choice. Also, you can add to the amount of Cajun seasoning used as well. It is totally your preference. My two-and-a-half year old loves this dish which is why I keep it pretty mild. She will sit and eat every bite off her plate, and she doesn’t even like carrots. The taste masks that well!

Enjoy!