Brad's chicken and sausage gumbo

Place seasoned flour into a lg ziplock bag. Add chicken and seal. Shake well to coat evenly. Heat canola oil in a lg frying pan just under medium heat. Fry chicken covered until golden brown on both sides. Set aside.

In the same pan, reserve 2 tbs of the chicken grease. Add onions, peppers, and celery. Fry on medium heat until onions are translucent.

Meanwhile in a lg Dutch oven, melt shortening on medium heat. Add flour and mix thoroughly. Stir almost constantly until the roux becomes almost a chocolate brown and smells very nutty. This takes a while, but is the base Flavor of the dish. If it starts to smell burnt. Start over.

Add tomatoes and garlic to the onion mixture. Keep frying until about half of the liquid from the onions evaporates. Add sherry. Bring to a simmer until half of that liquid evaporates.

When the roux is done it will be a nice caramel color. Slowly add the onion mixture to it. Continue to stir constantly. Add water and mix thoroughly. Add the fried chicken, bouillon and spices. Bring to a simmer and simmer for an hour uncovered. Stir every 5-10 minutes

Adjust seasonings to taste. Add okra and sausage. Simmer for another 20 minutes.

In a bowl, plate rice off to one side. Add gumbo to the bowl, and top with a chicken thigh. Sprinkle a little gumbo fil on top and serve immediately. Enjoy.