Pasta Pomodoro: Duck Gumbo lighter and Simpler

Duck Gumbo

• 6 to 8 ducks split and cleaned
•        Chicken or beef broth
•        6 TBS Old Bay
•        2 TBS garlic powder
•        1 TBS oregano
•        1 TBS salt
•        3 TBS gumbo file’
•        5 bay leaves
• 2 large yellow onions chopped
• 1 bell pepper chopped and a couple of celery stalks
with leaves chopped
•        1 cup extra virgin olive oil
•        1 ½ cups flour
•        1 ½ lbs sausage sliced, any sausage you like, try turkey

Put ducks in a large pot with enough water to cover them and
bring to a boil. Lower the fire and simmer for 3 to 6 hours
depending on the ducks. You want to be able to pull the meat
off the bones. Take the ducks out of the pot, save the liquid
in the pot, drain them and let them cool enough so you can
handle them. Pull the meat from the bones and coarsely chop
the duck meat, set aside. Strain the liquid you boiled the ducks
in and put into another pot along with chicken or beef broth
to have about 3 quarts. You will need to judge this and you
may need to add some more chicken or beef broth or liquid
later. Heat the broth and add Old Bay, garlic powder, oregano,
salt, gumbo file’, bay leaves. I sauteed the onions, pepper and
celery until tender in a little olive oil and then add to the broth
and continue cooking. Brown some sausage and set aside.

Heat 1 cup extra virgin olive oil over medium heat and slowly
add the flour and  using a whisk stirring constantly until the
roux is chocolate brown and not burnt. This last step makes
the gumbo authentic almost more than the rest of the
ingredients. Remove the roux from the fire and let it cool
completely. The roux can be made lighter and lower in fat
and calories by simply browning the flour with either a
microwave and the flour in a glass dish or pan or a skillet
placed in an oven at 400 degrees. You must watch it and
make sure it does not burn. Things can happen fast so
check every 2 minutes or so.

Then stir the roux into the pot and add the chopped duck
and sausage. Simmer for 10 more minutes and it is ready.
Serve over white rice for a treat. Leftovers are great the
next day or freeze the extra after it’s cooled down.

Boil the ducks whole

Until the meat is falling off the bone about 3 to 6 hours

Chop the cooked duck after removing from bone

Add the broths to a pot along with seasonings and heat

Saute the vegetables until tender in a little olive oil

Add vegetables to pot of broth and spices

Brown some sausage

Olive oil to start the roux

heat the oil and whisk in the flour

There is a fine line between chocolate brown and burnt. The roux keeps cooking a bit after you turn off the flame to err on the side of lite chocolate brown.