Cajun Chicken, Shrimp, and Andouille Sausage Gumbo

Date Published: Jan 16th, 2025 | Last Updated: Jan 16th, 2025
Author: Abby |Category: mains, soup
Serves: 6 | Prep time: 30 mins | Cook time: 2.5 hours

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The first time I ever had southern food was years ago and the unique rich earthy flavours drew me in from the very beginning. Making the perfect gumbo has been on my ‘to cook’ list for as long as I can remember and this past weekend I made it my mission to make the best gumbo I could through a lot of research and many hours in the kitchen. No corners were cut in the making of this recipe. Shrimp shells are saved to extract the seafood flavours into the broth, bacon fat is used for extra flavour, time and care is taken to create a beautiful deep caramelized roux, and not 1, not 2, but 3 proteins are used to make this the most flavourful and filling gumbo you can find! Even Toby, who usually doesn’t like gumbo, loved this version!

What is Gumbo?

Gumbo is a a southern style stew commonly made with chicken, Andouille sausage and/or seafood (spoiler: I use all 3 in my recipe). It’s actually the official state cuisine of Louisiana! What makes this stew unique is the deep earthy flavours that comes from a carefully watched browned roux, cajun seasoning, and filé powder (more on that below).

What is a roux?

The secret to a good gumbo starts at the beginning: with a good roux. A roux is a thickening agent made with a mixture of equal parts fat and flour. It is cooked slowly with constant care and whisking to add a richness to a dish. The colour of the roux will vary depending how long you cook it, ranging from white, brown, or dark brown. The longer you cook it, the more intense the flavour, but the less the thickening power. The same works vice versa – the less you cook it, the more thickening power but the blander the flavour. I like to go with a deep caramel colour to get the best of both worlds. You can use any kind of fat, but I chose to use bacon fat for the most flavour. You must constantly stir and watch the roux, as it can easily burn. This is a labour of love and can take up to 30-40 minutes, but it will be well worth it!

Special Gumbo Seasonings:

There are 2 special seasonings in this gumbo that I had to order specifically to make this as authentic as possible.

Cajun Seasoning – This is a blend of spices that adds salt, spiciness, and smokiness to the dish. Common go-to brands are “Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning” or “Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning“. If you can’t find either around you, a quick Google search will yield many recipes to make a spice blend of your own.

Gumbo Filé / Filé Powder – Filé powder, also known as gumbo filé, is a spice that is made from dried ground leaves of the sassafras tree. This powder has dual purpose in a gumbo: as a thickening agent and also provides earthy flavours. The aroma is similar to that of sage and bay leaf. If you can’t find gumbo filé in a pinch, consider using cornstarch to thicken and some pinches of sage – it won’t be quite the same, but it’ll be similar enough. Some gumbo recipes will use okra as the thickening agent instead.

Creole vs Cajun – adding tomatoes is optional

Both Creole and Cajun food are Louisiana cuisines from different areas. Think of Creole as city-style cooking with more variety of ingredients at their disposal, whereas Cajun food can be considered country-style cooking with ingredients that are more limited to what can be harvested and what is available. Tomatoes is one of those ingredients that is commonly seen in Creole food, but not Cajun. Across my hours of research, I found tomatoes incorporated into many recipes, but also just as equal number of comments omitting the tomatoes to tailor to the authenticity of cajun rustic flavours. I’ve chosen to exclude tomatoes in my recipe to bring out the earthy flavours more, but feel free to add a can of crushed tomatoes if you want it more tangy.

Served with rice vs potato salad?

Gumbo is commonly served with white rice, but I’ve seen multiple people get a heaping blob of cold potato salad right in the middle of their hot soup. This mix of hot and cold seemed so bizarre, but I gave it a go and it wasn’t half bad! The cold potato salad cuts into the heavy rich flavours of the gumbo and actually works quite well. Toby wasn’t as much of a fan of the combination as I was. 😅

Anyways, without further ado, here’s the recipe! If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section! You can follow me on instagram, youtube and facebook to see all the recipes I post!

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

Broth:
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 4 cups beef stock
- 1 kg/2 lbs of raw shrimp with shells, deveined without heads
1 Tbsp + 2/3 cup bacon fat (you can use vegetable oil or lard instead, but the bacon fat adds extra flavour)
340g/12 oz (1 package) Andouille sausage, sliced
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper/capsicum, diced
1 bunch celery, diced
4 large chicken thighs, bone-in (with or without)
1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning (I use ‘Slap Ya Mama’ brand, find it here)
1/2 tsp dried thyme
3 bay leaves
4 tsps gumbo filé/filé powder
2 Tbsps Worcestershire sauce
Garnish: sliced spring onions
Serve with: white rice or potato salad

Directions:

Prepare the broth:

In a small pot on MED heat, add in 4 cups of chicken stock and 4 cups of beef stock.

Remove the shells from the shrimp and add the shells into the stock. Let it simmer on the lowest heat for at least 20 minutes (or longer) while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Keep the lid on with a small crack to avoid evaporation and boiling over.

Brown the sausage:

In a large soup pot on MED-HIGH heat, melt 1 Tbsp of bacon fat and sear the sliced Andouille sausages on both sides until browned (you may want to do this in batches if you can’t fit all the sausage in a single layer). Once browned, remove the sausage onto a plate and set aside.

Make the roux:

Using the same pot on MED heat with the residual oil from the sausage, melt in the 2/3 cup bacon fat. Sprinkle 1 cup of flour over the melted fat and whisk the flour until combined. Continue to whisk regularly until you get a thick paste that is the colour of milk chocolate (this step is tedious and can take 30-40 minutes, take your time, don’t let the roux burn!).

Once your roux reaches the desired colour, add in the vegetables: 3 cloves minced garlic, onion, green pepper, and celery. Sauté until the vegetables are soft (8-10 minutes), making sure you regularly scrape the bottom of the pot so nothing sticks. You can put a lid on the let the vegetables sweat to speed up the softening process.

When the vegetables have softened, strain the shrimp shells from the broth (in step 1) and slowly pour the broth into the vegetable/roux mixture while stirring at the same time so no clumps form.

Let the soup come to a simmer then add in 1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning, 1/2 tsp dried thyme, 3 bay leaves, and 4 bone-in chicken thighs. Simmer for 1 hour, partially covered with a lid.

After 1 hour, remove the chicken into a bowl and add in the cooked sausage (from step 2) back into the soup along with 2 tsps of gumbo filé. Simmer for another 15 minutes.

While the soup continues to simmer, use two forks to shred the cooked chicken and remove the bone and skin (if present).

When the timer is up, add the shredded chicken back into the soup with the de-shelled raw shrimp (from step 1), and 2 more tsps of gumbo filé. Let it simmer for another 3-5 minutes until the shrimp is fully cooked, then turn off the heat.

Add in 2 Tbsps Worcestershire sauce, stir, and taste. Adjust salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning or Worcestershire as needed.

Done! Serve with rice or potato salad. Enjoy!

Summarized Recipe:

Cajun Chicken, Shrimp, and Andouille Sausage Gumbo

Date Published: Jan 16th, 2025 | Last Updated: Jan 16th, 2025
Author: Abby |Category: mains, soup
Serves: 6 | Prep time: 30 mins | Cook time: 2.5 hours

Ingredients:

Broth:
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 4 cups beef stock
- 1 kg/2 lbs of raw shrimp with shells, deveined without heads
1 Tbsp + 2/3 cup bacon fat (you can use vegetable oil or lard instead, but the bacon fat adds extra flavour)
340g/12 oz (1 package) Andouille sausage, sliced
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper/capsicum, diced
1 bunch celery, diced
4 large chicken thighs, bone-in (with or without)
1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning (I use ‘Slap Ya Mama’ brand, find it here)
1/2 tsp dried thyme
3 bay leaves
4 tsps gumbo filé/filé powder
2 Tbsps Worcestershire sauce
Garnish: sliced spring onions
Serve with: white rice or potato salad

Directions:

Prepare the broth:
- In a small pot on MED heat, add in 4 cups of chicken stock and 4 cups of beef stock.
- Remove the shells from the shrimp and add the shells into the stock. Let it simmer on the lowest heat for at least 20 minutes (or longer) while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Keep the lid on with a small crack to avoid evaporation and boiling over.
Brown the sausage:
- In a large soup pot on MED-HIGH heat, melt 1 Tbsp of bacon fat and sear the sliced Andouille sausages on both sides until browned (you may want to do this in batches if you can’t fit all the sausage in a single layer).
- Once browned, remove the sausage onto a plate and set aside.
Make the roux:
- Using the same pot on MED heat with the residual oil from the sausage, melt in the 2/3 cup bacon fat. Sprinkle 1 cup of flour over the melted fat and whisk the flour until combined. Continue to whisk regularly until you get a thick paste that is the colour of milk chocolate (this step is tedious and can take 30-40 minutes, take your time, don’t let the roux burn!).
Once your roux reaches the desired colour, add in the vegetables: 3 cloves minced garlic, onion, green pepper, and celery. Sauté until the vegetables are soft (8-10 minutes), making sure you regularly scrape the bottom of the pot so nothing sticks. You can put a lid on the let the vegetables sweat to speed up the softening process.
When the vegetables have softened, strain the shrimp shells from the broth (in step 1) and slowly pour the broth into the vegetable/roux mixture while stirring at the same time so no clumps form.
Let the soup come to a simmer then add in 1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning, 1/2 tsp dried thyme, 3 bay leaves, and 4 bone-in chicken thighs. Simmer for 1 hour, partially covered with a lid.
After 1 hour, remove the chicken into a bowl and add in the cooked sausage (from step 2) back into the soup along with 2 tsps of gumbo filé. Simmer for another 15 minutes.
While the soup continues to simmer, use two forks to shred the cooked chicken and remove the bone and skin (if present). When the timer is up, add the shredded chicken back into the soup with the de-shelled raw shrimp (from step 1), and 2 more tsps of gumbo filé. Let it simmer for another 3-5 minutes until the shrimp is fully cooked, then turn off the heat.
Add in 2 Tbsps Worcestershire sauce, stir, and taste. Adjust salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning or Worcestershire as needed. Done! Serve with rice or potato salad. Enjoy!

January 16, 2025June 28, 2025

AbbyLeave a comment

French Onion Mac & Cheese with Garlic Toasts

Date Published: Jan 11th, 2025 | Last Updated: Jan 11th, 2025
Author: Abby |Category: mains, sides, vegetarian
Serves: 8 as a main | Prep time: 20 mins | Cook time: 1.5 hours

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French Onion soup + Mac and Cheese. This is it. The ultimate comfort food. There are no short cuts here and no low-calorie nonsense this time. This is the real deal – pile on that butter and pack on the cheese because it’s time to indulge.

This mac and cheese recipe incorporates the essence of a French Onion soup: the sweet caramelized onions, tons of gruyère cheese, and topped with slices of toasted garlic bread. There’s just no better way to marry these two classic comfort dishes. This recipe does take a bit of time to caramelize the onions, but do it slow and low and you won’t regret it!

Happy cooking!

This recipe is adapted from the NYT version.

Ingredients you’ll need: *This recipe makes a LOT of mac and cheese (8-10 servings), halve the recipe if needed.

Caramelized onions:
- 3 Tbsps butter
- 900g/2 lbs (about 3 large) yellow or sweet onions, sliced
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 large bay leaf
- Splashes of beef stock as needed
- 2 Tbsps sherry vinegar
Pasta:
- 1 box (1lb/16oz/454g) of elbow pasta/macaroni
Baguette toasts:
- 1 baguette, sliced to 2.5cm thickness
- 1 garlic clove, peeled
- 1 cup (4oz) gruyère cheese, freshly grated (do not get the pre-grated cheese)
Béchamel Cheese Sauce:
- 2 Tbsps butter
- 3 Tbsps all-purpose flour
- 4 cups whole milk
- 4 cups (170g/6oz) gruyère cheese, freshly grated (do not get the pre-grated cheese)
- 4 + 1 cups (200g/7 oz) sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated (do not get the pre-grated cheese)
- Salt & pepper
Fresh thyme leaves for garnish

Directions:

Caramelize the onions (you can do this the day before):

In a large deep oven-safe skillet (I use a 5.5 qt braiser enamel cast-iron pot) on MED heat, add in 3 Tbsps of butter, sliced onions, 6 sprigs thyme and 1 bay leaf. Cook until the onions soften (3-4 minutes), then turn the heat down to LOW and slowly continue to cook the onions until they’re a deep brown colour (~45 minutes to 1 hour).

Stir frequently, every 4-5 minutes to ensure the onions don’t burn and scrape the brown bits off bottom regularly. If it seems like it’s about to burn, add a splash of beef stock to loosen everything.

The onions will occasionally threaten to burn

Once the onions are done, add in 2 Tbsps of sherry vinegar to deglaze the pan and scrape up any remaining bits for 30 seconds. Discard the bay leaf and thyme sprig stems. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside.

Make the pasta:

While the onions are caramelizing, cook the pasta according to package instructions with a pinch of salt in the water, but stop cooking 2 minutes before it’s finished. Strain the pasta but reserve the pasta water for later in case needed and run the pasta under cold water until ready to be used.

Run under cold water to stop the cooking process

Make the baguette toasts:

While the pasta cooks, arrange the baguette slices onto a baking tray and broil for 1-2 minutes to lightly toast them until they’re just firm (you don’t need to brown them). Cut the end off of one clove of garlic and rub one side of each toasted baguette slice and set aside.

Make the cheese sauce:

Preheat the oven to 450˚F/230˚C.

In the same pan that was used for the onions, melt 2 Tbsps of butter on MED heat. Once melted, sprinkle in 3 Tbsps of flour. Whisk for 1-2 minutes until the flour is incorporated, bubbles, and turns a light golden brown.

Slowly add in the 4 cups of milk while whisking at the same time to ensure the flour and milk mixes well together without clumps. Let the sauce come to a simmer.

Add back in the caramelized onions (from step 1) and mix together.

Next, add in 4 cups of gruyère and 4 cups of cheddar cheese. Continue to whisk until all the cheese has melted, then add in the cooked pasta (from step 2). Mix it all around, then add salt and pepper to taste.

If you prefer your mac & cheese on the runnier side, add some reserved pasta water (from step 2) to the pot until you reach the desired consistency. Turn off the heat.

Assemble & Bake!

Arrange the garlic-rubbed baguette toasts over the mac and cheese and sprinkle the 1 cup grated cheddar cheese over the top of the toasts.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly. Broil for 1-2 minutes at the end until the cheese is golden brown.

Garnish with fresh thyme leaves and serve immediately!

Summarized Recipe:

French Onion Mac & Cheese with Garlic Toasts

Ingredients:

Caramelized onions:
- 3 Tbsps butter
- 900g/2 lbs (about 3 large) yellow or sweet onions, sliced
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 large bay leaf
- Splashes of beef stock as needed
- 2 Tbsps sherry vinegar
Pasta:
- 1 box (1lb/16oz/454g) of elbow pasta/macaroni
Baguette toasts:
- 1 baguette, sliced to 2.5cm thickness
- 1 garlic clove, peeled
- 1 cup (4oz) gruyère cheese, freshly grated (do not get the pre-grated cheese)
Béchamel Cheese Sauce:
- 2 Tbsps butter
- 3 Tbsps all-purpose flour
- 4 cups whole milk
- 4 cups (6oz) gruyère cheese, freshly grated (do not get the pre-grated cheese)
- 4 + 1 cups (7 oz) sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated (do not get the pre-grated cheese)
- Salt & pepper
Fresh thyme leaves for garnish

Directions:

Caramelize the onions (you can do this the day before):
- In a large deep oven-safe skillet (I use a 5.5 qt braiser enamel cast-iron pot) on MED heat, add in 3 Tbsps of butter, sliced onions, 6 sprigs thyme and 1 bay leaf. Cook until the onions soften (3-4 minutes), then turn the heat down to LOW and slowly continue to cook the onions until they’re a deep brown colour (~45 minutes to 1 hour). Stir frequently, every 4-5 minutes to ensure the onions don’t burn and scrape the brown bits off bottom regularly. If it seems like it’s about to burn, add a splash of beef stock to loosen everything.
- Once the onions are done, add in 2 Tbsps of sherry vinegar to deglaze the pan and scrape up any remaining bits for 30 seconds. Discard the bay leaf and thyme sprig stems. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside.
Make the pasta:
- While the onions are caramelizing, cook the pasta according to package instructions with a pinch of salt in the water, but stop cooking 2 minutes before it’s finished. Strain the pasta but reserve the pasta water for later in case needed and run the pasta under cold water until ready to be used.
Make the baguette toasts:
- While the pasta cooks, arrange the baguette slices onto a baking tray and broil for 1-2 minutes to lightly toast them until they’re just firm (you don’t need to brown them). Cut the end off of one clove of garlic and rub one side of each toasted baguette slice and set aside.
Make the cheese sauce:
- Preheat the oven to 450˚F/230˚C.
- In the same pan that was used for the onions, melt 2 Tbsps of butter on MED heat. Once melted, sprinkle in 3 Tbsps of flour. Whisk for 1-2 minutes until the flour is incorporated, bubbles, and turns a light golden brown.
- Slowly add in the 4 cups of milk while whisking at the same time to ensure the flour and milk mixes well together without clumps. Let the sauce come to a simmer.
- Add back in the caramelized onions (from step 1) and mix together.
- Next, add in 4 cups of gruyère and 4 cups of cheddar cheese. Continue to whisk until all the cheese has melted, then add in the cooked pasta (from step 2). Mix it all around, then add salt and pepper to taste.
  - If you prefer your mac & cheese on the runnier side, add some reserved pasta water (from step 2) to the pot until you reach the desired consistency. Turn off the heat.
Assemble & Bake!
- Arrange the garlic-rubbed baguette toasts over the mac and cheese and sprinkle the 1 cup grated cheddar cheese over the top of the toasts.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly. Broil for 1-2 minutes at the end until the cheese is golden brown.
- Garnish with fresh thyme leaves and serve immediately!

January 11, 2025December 19, 2024

AbbyLeave a comment

Sausage Mushroom Zucchini Tian (kinda like a risotto but easier)

Date Published: Feb 28th, 2024 | Last Updated: Feb 28th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: easy, healthy, low-cal, mains, vegetarian
Serves: 4-6 | Prep time: 1 hour | Cook time: 40 mins

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‘Tian de Courgettes au Riz’ is a recipe from the great Julia Child. I came across this recipe randomly through my search for healthier meals in this new year and found many adaptations of it. From those adaptations, I played around with the recipe, added in mushrooms and sausage (because why not) to make it a more rounded and hearty meal, and out came yet another adaptation of her recipe 😛. According to the internet, a “tian” is a French word used to describe a shallow baking dish but also the name of a baked vegetable dish (Martha Stewart compares the wordplay to a casserole and a casserole dish).

In its essence, this dish is pretty much rice cooked in zucchini liquid mixed with mushroom, meat, and cheese. It’s kind of like a risotto, except much easier to achieve. This recipe seems long, but I promise it’s just wordy and not difficult at all. Once you get into it, you’ll realize that it’s quite easy and not at all intimidating unlike other Julia Child recipes.

This recipe is a fantastic way to use up an overflow of zucchinis in the summer season. For 6 portions, it uses up about 6 large zucchinis. I wish I discovered this recipe sooner when Toby and I were staying on the farm. His dad grew sooooo many zucchinis that we were gifting them to everyone we see (he was seriously harvesting at least 6-8 a day at peak season!).

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

*You will need an oven-proof pot or dutch oven with a lid – I used a 5 1/4 quart dutch oven.

1.5kg zucchinis (roughly 6 large ones)
500g portobello mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
Roughly 1/2 a cup of milk (amount will vary depending on how much liquid is released from your zucchini and mushrooms)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium brown onions, diced
3 Tbsps all purpose flour
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated + extra for sprinkling
Salt & pepper to taste
3/4 cup medium grain rice (I use arborio/risotto rice, but any medium grain will do)
300-400g kielbasa (Polish sausage), diced
- You can use any protein you like (ie. sausage, ground beef, shredded rotisserie chicken…etc.), but make sure your protein is cooked, dry, and doesn’t add any extra liquid or else it’ll throw off the liquid ratio to cook the rice.

Directions:

Cut the fibrous ends off the zucchinis and grate each one using a large hole grater (this is a whole lot quicker if you have a food processor with a grating function). Place a colander over a bowl and put the grated zucchini into the colander with 3 tsps of salt. Use your hands and massage the salt through the zucchini, making sure its mixed well. Set aside for 1 hour, allowing the liquid from the zucchini to release and collect in the bowl below.

After 1 hour, squeeze out as much zucchini liquid as you can and save this liquid. Rinse the grated zucchini under cold water to remove any excess salt and squeeze until dry and set aside (do not save this liquid).

While you’re waiting for the zucchini to release its liquid, cook the mushrooms: in a large pan on MED-HIGH heat, add a drizzle of oil and sauté the mushrooms until cooked (4-5 minutes). Place the cooked mushrooms in a strainer and reserve any liquid.

Measure out the amount of collected zucchini liquid from step 2 and add in the released liquid from the mushrooms in step 3 until it makes 3.75 cups. If the combined liquid is not enough to make up 3.75 cups, then add enough milk to make up the rest of the amount. Pour the liquid into a saucepan and heat it up on the stove until warmed. Do NOT let it come to a boil, otherwise it may split. Only heat it up until warmed. Keep on LOW heat until ready to use.

Preheat the oven to 220C/425F.

In an oven-safe pot or dutch oven (make sure there’s a lid, I used a 5 1/4 quart size dutch oven) on MED-HIGH heat, add a drizzle of oil and sauté the garlic and onion together for 3-4 minutes until the onion turns translucent. Then add in the grated zucchini and continue to sauté for another 5-6 minutes.

Add in the cooked mushrooms and 3 Tbsps of flour to the pan and continue mixing for 2 more minutes until everything is well combined then turn off the heat.

Mix in the Parmesan cheese, rice, and kielbasa (or your choice of cooked protein).

Pour in the warmed zucchini/mushroom/milk liquid over top. Mix it all together then cover with the lid and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Add Parmesan and bake uncovered for another 20-25 mins

After 20 minutes, remove the lid and add a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese over top and continue baking without the lid for another 20-25 minutes, or until the liquid has been absorbed and the top is slightly golden brown. Once it’s done, take it out of the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes for any remaining liquid to absorb before serving. When dishing it out, add another sprinkle of Parmesan cheese before serving. Enjoy!

Summarized Recipe:

Sausage Mushroom Zucchini Tian (kinda like a risotto but easier)

Ingredients:

*You will need an oven-proof pot or dutch oven with a lid – I used a 5 1/4 quart dutch oven.

1.5kg zucchinis (roughly 6 large ones)
500g portobello mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
Roughly 1/2 a cup of milk (amount will vary depending on how much liquid is released from your zucchini and mushrooms)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium brown onions, diced
3 Tbsps all purpose flour
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated + extra for sprinkling
Salt & pepper to taste
3/4 cup medium grain rice (I use arborio/risotto rice, but any medium grain will do)
300-400g kielbasa (Polish sausage), diced
- You can use any protein you like (ie. sausage, ground beef, shredded rotisserie chicken…etc.), but make sure your protein is cooked, dry, and doesn’t add any extra liquid or else it’ll throw off the liquid ratio to cook the rice.

Directions:

Prepare the zucchini: Cut the fibrous ends off the zucchinis and grate each one using a large hole grater (this is a whole lot quicker if you have a food processor with a grating function). Place a colander over a bowl and put the grated zucchini into the colander with 3 tsps of salt. Use your hands and massage the salt through the zucchini, making sure its mixed well. Set aside for 1 hour, allowing the liquid from the zucchini to release and collect in the bowl below. After 1 hour, squeeze out as much zucchini liquid as you can and save this liquid. Rinse the grated zucchini under cold water to remove any excess salt and squeeze until dry and set aside (do not save this liquid).
Cook the mushrooms: While you’re waiting for the zucchini to release its liquid, cook the mushrooms: in a large pan on MED-HIGH heat, add a drizzle of oil and sauté the mushrooms until cooked (4-5 minutes). Place the cooked mushrooms in a strainer and reserve any liquid.
Prepare the liquid: Measure out the amount of collected zucchini liquid from step 2 and add in the released liquid from the mushrooms in step 3 until it makes 3.75 cups. If the combined liquid is not enough to make up 3.75 cups, then add enough milk to make up the rest of the amount. Pour the liquid into a saucepan and heat it up on the stove until warmed. Do NOT let it come to a boil, otherwise it may split. Only heat it up until warmed. Keep on LOW heat until ready to use.
Preheat the oven to 220C/425F.
In an oven-safe pot or dutch oven (make sure there’s a lid) on MED-HIGH heat, add a drizzle of oil and sauté the garlic and onion together for 3-4 minutes until the onion turns translucent. Then add in the grated zucchini and continue to sauté for another 5-6 minutes.
Add in the cooked mushrooms and 3 Tbsps of flour to the pan and continue mixing for 2 more minutes until everything is well combined then turn off the heat.
Mix in the Parmesan cheese, rice, and kielbasa (or your choice of cooked protein).
Pour in the warmed zucchini/mushroom/milk liquid over top. Mix it all together then cover with the lid and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, remove the lid and add a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese over top and continue baking without the lid for another 20-25 minutes, or until the liquid has been absorbed and the top is slightly golden brown. Once it’s done, take it out of the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes for any remaining liquid to absorb before serving. When dishing it out, add another sprinkle of Parmesan cheese before serving. Enjoy!

February 28, 2024February 28, 2024

AbbyLeave a comment

Damn Good Short Rib Ragu (in an Instant Pot)

Date Published: Feb 27th, 2024 | Last Updated: Feb 27th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: mains
Serves: 4-6 | Prep time: 20 mins | Cook time: 1 hour 30 mins

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After making my first ever short ribs dish through this insanely good recipe, I’ve become hooked! Short ribs was never a cut of meat I’ve worked with before and it often requires extremely long cooking times to break down the connective tissue, but praise the Instant Pot! It cuts down cooking times from 3 hours to just 1 hour and it produced extremely soft fall-off-the-bone results. If you’re unfamiliar with short ribs, you can check out my other short rib recipe for a bit of background information, including the differences between the cuts of short ribs.

This recipe is originally from Giada. I’ve altered it for Instant Pot cooking methods to cut down on cooking times and still produce identical results.

Unlike the classic braised short rib with red wine sauce, this meat is shredded then served in a slightly more subtle tomato-base sauce with a touch of Dijon mustard and a cup of red wine (rather than half the bottle). The rich meaty sauce is tossed through your choice of any style of pasta and served with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese. The deliciously flavourful sauce with the soft shredded meats is balanced out by the pasta, making this the perfect pasta dish to make to impress. You’ll be amazed by how much flavour you can get from so few ingredients!

Happy cooking!

Ingredients you’ll need:

1.8kg (4 lbs) beef short ribs, English cut (Cross cut/Korean cut is fine too but it will take longer to sear and it’ll be annoying to remove all the little round bones at the end)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
5 Roma tomatoes, cut into eighths
1 cup red wine – any will do, even the cheap stuff! I use cabernet sauvignon
3 Tbsps Dijon mustard
2 cups beef broth
4-6 portions of pasta – any kind you like
Parmesan cheese for sprinkling when serving

Directions:

Sprinkle salt and pepper over the short ribs.

Turn your instant pot on to the SAUTÉ setting on HIGH heat. Add a drizzle of oil and sear the short ribs in batches, making sure you brown every side. Set aside the seared ribs.

Tip: Watch out for the oil splattering! A splatter guard will work wonders here and extra long tongs or extra long chopsticks will be even better to avoid getting hot oil on your hands when you turn the ribs to sear each side.

Turn the heat down to MED and add in the onion and garlic. Sauté for 2 minutes until fragrant, making sure you scrape up any browned bits from the beef on the bottom and sides of the pot (the precious brown bits give us extra flavour and the moisture from the onions will help soften it from the bottom of the pot).

Add in the tomatoes, red wine, Dijon mustard, and beef stock. Mix everything together and simmer for 3 minutes for the alcohol to cook out.

Add back in the seared ribs (from step 2) and submerge them in the liquid. Cancel the instant pot sauté setting and put on the lid. Set the instant pot to PRESSURE COOK and HIGH for 1:00 hour with 10 minutes of natural release.

When the timer has finished, turn off the instant pot and open it. You should have a very tender fall-off-the-bone short rib! Very carefully, remove all of the meat and bones into a separate bowl. Discard all the bones and use two forks to shred the meat. Cover the meat to keep warm and set aside.

Liquid left over after the meat and bones have been removed

Make the sauce: Once all the meat and bones have been removed, you should only have vegetables left in the liquid. Skim off any excess oil that may be floating on top. Use a stick blender to blend the liquid until smooth (you can also pour it into a blender if you don’t have a stick blender) then pour it into a saucepan or wide based pan. Turn the heat to MED and simmer for 15-20 mins to reduce the sauce until you get a thickened syrupy consistency. This will take a while because there will be a decent amount of liquid to cook down since the instant pot does not evaporate any liquid as it cooks. Once the sauce has thickened, add the shredded meat (from step 6) into the sauce and stir through until warmed. Turn off the heat.

Make the pasta: While the sauce is reducing, make the pasta according to instructions. Strain when finished and set aside.

To serve: Divide the pasta into serving bowls and spoon the sauce with meat over top. Add a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese overtop before serving. Done!

Summarized Recipe:

Damn Good Short Rib Ragu (in an Instant Pot)

Date Published: Feb 27th, 2024 | Last Updated: Feb 27th, 2024
Author: Abby |Category: mains
Serves: 4-6 | Prep time: 20 mins | Cook time: 1 hour 30 mins

Ingredients:

1.8kg (4 lbs) beef short ribs, English cut (Cross cut/Korean cut is fine too but it will take longer to sear and it’ll be annoying to remove all the little round bones at the end)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
5 Roma tomatoes, cut into eighths
1 cup red wine – any will do, even the cheap stuff! I use cabernet sauvignon
3 Tbsps Dijon mustard
2 cups beef broth
4-6 portions of pasta – any kind you like
Parmesan cheese for sprinkling when serving

Directions:

Sprinkle salt and pepper over the short ribs.
Turn your instant pot on to the SAUTÉ setting on HIGH heat. Add a drizzle of oil and sear the short ribs in batches, making sure you brown every side. Set aside the seared ribs.
- Tip: Watch out for the oil splattering! A splatter guard will work wonders here and extra long tongs or extra long chopsticks will be even better to avoid getting hot oil on your hands when you turn the ribs to sear each side.
Turn the heat down to MED and add in the onion and garlic. Sauté for 2 minutes until fragrant, making sure you scrape up any browned bits from the beef on the bottom and sides of the pot (the precious brown bits give us extra flavour and the moisture from the onions will help soften it from the bottom of the pot).
Add in the tomatoes, red wine, Dijon mustard, and beef stock. Mix everything together and simmer for 3 minutes for the alcohol to cook out.
Add back in the seared ribs (from step 2) and submerge them in the liquid. Cancel the instant pot sauté setting and put on the lid. Set the instant pot to PRESSURE COOK and HIGH for 1:00 hour with 10 minutes of natural release.
When the timer has finished, turn off the instant pot and open it. You should have a very tender fall-off-the-bone short rib! Very carefully, remove all of the meat and bones into a separate bowl. Discard all the bones and use two forks to shred the meat. Cover the meat to keep warm and set aside.
Make the sauce: Once all the meat and bones have been removed, you should only have vegetables left in the liquid. Skim off any excess oil that may be floating on top. Use a stick blender to blend the liquid until smooth (you can also pour it into a blender if you don’t have a stick blender) then pour it into a saucepan or wide based pan. Turn the heat to MED and simmer for 15-20 mins to reduce the sauce until you get a thickened syrupy consistency. This will take a while because there will be a decent amount of liquid to cook down since the instant pot does not evaporate any liquid as it cooks. Once the sauce has thickened, add the shredded meat (from step 6) into the sauce and stir through until warmed. Turn off the heat.
Make the pasta: While the sauce is reducing, make the pasta according to instructions. Strain when finished and set aside.
To serve: Divide the pasta into serving bowls and spoon the sauce with meat over top. Add a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese overtop before serving. Done!

February 27, 2024

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