Chicken-Okra Gumbo Plains-Style

Instructions

1. 1

   Wash salt pork under cold water to rinse off excess salt. Blot dry and cut into small dice.

2. 2

   Place in a large, heavy soup pot and cook over low heat until all fat has been rendered. Remove crisped pork dice and drain on paper toweling. Set aside.

3. 3

   Blot chicken pieces dry with paper toweling and dredge lightly with flour. Press flour into each piece, then shake off all excess.

4. 4

   Heat salt pork to almost smoking. Brown the floured chicken pieces a few at a time in the hot fat. Remove as browned and set aside.

5. 5

   Pour off and discard fat. Add butter to soup pot and place over low heat. When melted, add onion and okra and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until onion is soft. Be careful not to let okra scorch.

6. 6

   Return chicken to pot and add remaining ingredients except salt and pepper and optional flour. Let simmer for about 1-1/2 hours, adding additional water if needed. Remove from heat. Remove and discard bay leaf.

7. 7

   Remove skin and bone from chicken pieces and return meat to pot. Reheat if necessary. If desired, thicken mixture with 1-2 tablespoons flour mixed to a paste with about 1/2 cup cold water, and stir over low heat an additional 10-15 minutes.

8. 8

   Ladle into large soup bowls over mounds of just-cooked, fluffy white rice. Sprinkle crisped pork dice over each serving.