This Creole-style gumbo is a one-pot wonder loaded with chicken, shrimp, crabmeat, smoked sausage, and Creole spices in a tomato-based stew thickened with a roux, a bit different from Cajun-style gumbo. You will absolutely love the flavor.
Creole Style Gumbo Recipe
I'm a huge gumbo lover and I'm happy to share with you this delicious Creole-style Gumbo that I learned how to make in New Orleans.
Gumbo is the Official State Cuisine of Louisiana. You'll find many variations around the state, with a variety of different ingredients and different seasonings depending on the location and the cook.
The largest differences are typically boiled down to Cajun vs. Creole Style Gumbo. In general, Cajun Gumbo is more rustic with fewer seasonings and focusing on meats like chicken and sausage, though might also include game meats.
Creole Gumbo is generally characterized by the use of more seasonings and fresh herbs, other meats like seafood, as well as tomatoes. You might think of it as city gumbo, or New Orleans gumbo.
This is a Creole style gumbo made with a mix of meats and seafood, thickened with a roux. It's one of my favorites, and I hope you love it, too.
Let's talk about how to make Creole style gumbo, shall we?
Creole Style Gumbo Ingredients
The full ingredients list with measurements and full instructions are listed in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Meats. Use chicken breast or chicken thighs and andouille sausage. You can use other smoked sausage, like Conecuh sausage.
- Seafood. Shrimp and crabmeat. Or use your favorites.
- Peanut Oil or Vegetable Oil. You can also use butter.
- Flour. For the roux.
- Vegetables. Green bell pepper, onion, celery, garlic.
- Tomatoes. I am using crushed tomatoes, though you can use fire roasted or freshly chopped. You can also use tomato sauce (passata).
- Creole Seasonings. Plus salt and black pepper. Try my homemade Creole seasoning recipe. Much better than store bought.
- Cayenne Pepper. For additional heat. Optional.
- Chicken Broth. Or use seafood broth.
- Bay Leaf.
- Thyme.
- Chopped Parsley.
- Filé Powder. Optional. For thickening your gumbo for serving.
How to Make Creole Style Gumbo - the Recipe Method
Heat some oil in a large pot and cook the chicken and andouille a few minutes, just to brown the meats. Set aside.
Make the roux by adding peanut or vegetable oil to the same pot. Stir in the flour to form a slurry, and stir over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the roux browns to the color of peanut butter, about 15 to 20 minutes.
You can go lighter or darker if you’d like. I often enjoy a dark roux the color of chocolate.
See my post on How to Make a Roux for more information and a video tutorial, with a discussion on options.
Add the peppers, onion, celery and garlic, cook for 5 minutes, then stir in the chicken and andouille.
Add the tomatoes, Creole seasoning, cayenne, chicken or seafood stock, bay leaves and fresh thyme. Simmer 1 hour to thicken.
Stir in the shrimp and crab and tuck into the gumbo. Simmer 6-7 minutes, or until the seafood is cooked through.
Boom! Done! Your Creole gumbo is ready to serve. Stir in fresh parsley and serve into bowls with filé powder on the side for thickening, if desired. Garnish with extra parsley. This is great over white rice.
Recipe Tips & Notes
- Adjust the thickness of your gumbo with your roux. Use a lighter roux the color of peanut butter or a copper penny for a thicker stew. Use a darker roux the color of dark chocolate or mahogony for a thinner soup-like gumbo. Use a blonde roux for a very thick gumbo.
- Okra is a popular addition to gumbo, and also acts a thickener. If you include gumbo in the dish, consider skipping or using less roux.
Storage & Leftovers
Leftover Creole gumbo will last up to 5 days in the refrigerator in a sealed container. Reheat it gently in a pot on the stove top to enjoy again.
You can also freeze gumbo for 3 months in freezer containers. It freezes quite well.
That's it, my friends. I hope you enjoy my Creole style gumbo recipe. Let me know if you make it. I'd love to hear how it turned out for you, and if you decided to spice it up!
Cookbook Recommendation
If you enjoy Cajun and Creole cuisine, I recommend the following cookbooks. There are a lot of great recipes.
- Louisiana Real and Rustic, by Emeril Lagasse (affiliate link, my friends!)
- Complete Cajun Cookbook: 100 Home-Cooked Bayou Classics, by Ryan Boudreaux (affiliate link, my friends!)
- Real Cajun: Rustic Home Cooking from Donald Link's Louisiana, by Donald Link (affiliate link, my friends!)
- Also, check out MY cookbook - The Spicy Food Lovers' Cookbook, by Mike Hultquist (affiliate link, my friends!)
Amazon Affiliate links, my friends! As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.
Creole Gumbo Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 pound chicken breast or thicken thighs, chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 pound ounces andouille sliced into ¼ inch slices
- 3/4 cup peanut oil or vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1 medium bell pepper chopped
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 medium celery stalk chopped
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 28 ounce crushed tomatoes (2 14-oz cans)
- 2 tablespoons Creole seasoning
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional, for extra spicy
- 6 cups chicken stock or use seafood stock
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
- 1 pound shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1 pound crab meat (I used lump crab - use more shrimp or tender white fish as an alternative)
- 4 tablespoons chopped parsley + more for serving
- 1 tablespoon filé powder or to taste optional, for thickening
Instructions
- Heat a pan to medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon olive oil and heat.
- Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to the pan along with the sliced andouille. Cook a couple minutes per side until browned. Set aside until ready to use.
- Add the peanut oil to a large pot and heat to medium heat. Add flour and stir. Cook for 15-20 minutes, constantly stirring, until the roux browns to the color of peanut butter. You can go lighter or darker (chocolate brown) if you’d like.
- Add peppers, onion, celery and garlic. Stir and cook about 5 minutes.
- Add chicken and andouille. Stir and cook for 1 minute.
- Add crushed tomatoes, Creole seasoning, cayenne, and chicken stock. Scrape up the brown bits from the bottom.
- Add bay leaves and thyme and cook at medium-low heat for 1 hour to thicken.
- Stir in shrimp and crab and tuck into the gumbo. Simmer 6-7 minutes, or until the seafood is cooked through.
- Stir in fresh parsley and serve into bowls with filé powder on the side for thickening, if desired. Garnish with extra parsley.
Notes
Joel A. Deynzer says
Great gumbo. I smoked a chicken and used it to make my stock and for the meat. Also used andouie but left out the seafood. First time using tomatoes and they gave a nice flavor note. Will be putting this in our dinner rotation!
Mike Hultquist says
I love this! I need to make a smoked chicken version. What a great flavor addition. Thanks for sharing this, Joe. Glad you enjoyed it!
Amanda Carroll says
5-star recipe for sure, but I had to take some shortcuts (long day with a sick kid, and lack of ingredient planning!). I omitted the chicken just because we don't really like chicken. I used a jarred roux which I've never tried before but worked out surprisingly well. My bell pepper had gone bad so I added 2 small cans of mild diced green chiles. Omitted the celery, it had gone bad too. I was out of Creole seasoning so I substituted some crab boil seasoning that I have. It worked flavor-wise, but was pretty salty! I also left out the crab. I had the can of crabmeat sitting right next to the stove, but just forgot it. No cayenne, and I thought it was spicy enough - especially since I was hoping my kids would eat it. I'd definitely make this recipe again - I'm sure it would be even better if I had all the right ingredients!
Mike Hultquist says
It's good to know it was still delicious with these short cuts/updates, Amanda. Glad you enjoyed it, and I hope your sick kid is feeling better!
Nancy says
Never made a bad recipe from ChillpepperMadness, but this is a favorite!
I increased the vegetables to 3 stalks of celery, a large red pepper, and 5 cloves of garlic.
Substituted crawfish tail for crab (crab has gotten very expensive) and used homegrown cayenne pepper. Made a dark rou with butter instead of oil for more flavor depth. Otherwise followed the recipe as written .
We served it with brown rice for our Fat Tuesday celebration. It was met with rave reviews! Bonus: it’s even better the second night!
Mike Hultquist says
Glad everyone enjoyed it, Nancy!! Thank you SO MUCH for sharing this! I agree, even better after it melds. Great for make ahead. Cheers!!!
Diane Boyer says
Gumbo is a winter staple during these cold days. Plus it uses the veggies we freeze during the summer months. We used our own veggies: whole tomatoes, smoked long hot peppers, long hot peppers, bell peppers and okra. We used andouille sausage from a local butcher and 1 lb. shrimp. We made our own shrimp stock from the shells and used a veggie broth for the rest of the liquid. Served over brown rice. Delicious!
Mike Hultquist says
Outstanding!! Glad you enjoyed it, Diane!! I greatly appreciate you sharing this!! Thanks so much.
Nicole says
I made this for dinner and it was amazing! I’ve never made a gumbo before. I got a medium creole seasoning and didn’t use the cayenne because I’m kind of a wimp. But I followed the recipe basically to a T and would highly recommended it.
Mike H. says
I am very happy to read your review, Nicole. Thank you and enjoy!
Gene Stacy says
Mike, Great dish, followed your recipe but added duck andouille sausage, 1 cup of okra and made a lobster shrimp stock. Absolutely delicious. Thanks
Mike H. says
Love it, Gene. Glad you've customized it to your preference. Enjoy!
Tamir says
Loved it! I skipped the sausage but it was still very tasty. serving it over rice is definitely the way to go
Mike Hultquist says
Glad you enjoyed it, Tamir.
Missy Roberts says
Living and cooking in South Louisiana, I have never made a gumbo with tomatoes, yet I was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the creole gumbo immensely. I shared it with several friends when I made it and they all loved it as well. The recipe is “spot on” in my book for how to make a gumbo. I usually don’t combine chicken and seafood in the same gumbo so that was another yummy surprise! I always have locally made andouille on hand so I’m happy your gumbo recipes use this type of sausage. Keep the recipes coming!!
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks so much, Missy!! I greatly appreciate your comments! I hope you'll try some of my Cajun-style gumbo recipes, too and see if they are closer to what you're used to. I wish I had access to local andouille!! Jealous. Thanks again!
Tara Becker says
Great recipe! I love the Creole-Cajun combination and I’ll definitely make it again!
Mike Hultquist says
Glad you enjoyed it, Tara!!
Julie says
Very yummy gumbo! I had never tried Creole Gumbo before and I really loved the smokiness of the sauce. Made sure I wasn't impatient and got the roux to a nice dark brown. I don't eat seafood nor did I have file powder, so I skipped those plus dropped broth down to 4 cups. That was an accident - I intended to add a 5th cup (again, no file powder but wanted thicker base) and it was delicious. Next time, I think I'll add extra peppers and onions, maybe a jalapeno and like this time, I will serve over rice. YUM!
Mike Hultquist says
Glad you enjoyed it, Julie!! Your experience is greatly appreciated, and helpful! Thanks so much.
Bob Larrivee says
Loved the gumbo recipe Mike! Made it last night and the sauce was so tasty I added some of it to the boiling brown rice. I added the file’ pretty early, put the pan on the slow burner and shrimp 5 minutes before serving.
Mike Hultquist says
Perfection!! Thanks so much, Bob!! Super happy that you enjoyed it!! I appreciate your comments, always.
diahnn burns says
Damn excellent recipe!! Loved every bite!!
Mike Hultquist says
Nice!! Glad you enjoyed it, Diahnn!
Jon Skekel says
Very Good Gumbo recipe! It now. regular in my rotation of creole and cajun cooking! I keep playing with the peppers, using jalapeño or serrano and pablano to get my perfect ratio of heat! Crab meat is an interesting add on but I prefer lots of shrimp instead.
Mike Hultquist says
Great!! Glad you enjoyed it, Jon! Yes, it's definitely fun to play with the pepper options, and I love how the seafood options are just so versatile. Thanks for sharing this!