Easy Duck Gumbo - Video Recipe

For my Easy Duck Gumbo, the two main ingredients are ready to use. During the Christmas holidays, if I have leftover Roast Duck, then it goes right into a Gumbo that's made with a store-bought Roux.

A Cajun Gumbo is a dark and muddy swamp of a soup made with almost any kind of meat or seafood, a Roux, and a Cajun Holy Trinity of veggies. When I visit Louisiana, Gumbo will be on the menu, whether I  order it from a local Cajun fast food joint or make it at home.

Even Louisiana's Meals on Wheels government safety net program offers homebound seniors (60 years or older) a Chicken and Sausage Gumbo meal. How does it fare? Hmmm, check back for a Cheap$kate Dining Review by the Swamp Chef.

The first main ingredient for a Gumbo is a Roux. Grocers are starting to carry Roux that is pre-cooked and brown, so you can go right to sauting veggies, then add the pre-cooked Roux. I've made Gumbo using the shortcut grocery method and the long, homemade version of Roux. For this recipe, I use store-bought, browned Roux for a Gumbo that's easy and quick to make. 

  Click on any photo to see larger.

Pre-made Roux can be dry or wet with oil added. There are also Gumbo Mixes, including Roux and Cajun spices.

Usually, a Homemade Roux has plain raw flour cooked and stirred until a medium to dark brown, which gives Gumbo its unique nutty flavor and color. Back in the day, an equal amount of oil was used to brown the flour. These days, I leave the oil out.

Homemade Roux without oil.

I also use leftover Roast Duck pieces. I cook my Duck like I would Roast Chicken. The main difference is that you should slice or pierce the Duck skin so the fatty layer under the skin will drain and allow the skin to crisp.

A couple of hard-to-find ingredients in my Duck Gumbo can be left out. Filé Powder is dried sassafras leaves. Creole Seasoning is mainly salt, pepper, paprika, oregano, thyme, cayenne, onion, and garlic powders. 

Along with a packaged Roux and leftover Duck, I add a Cajun Holy Trinity comprised of bell pepper, celery, and onion, which is used in many Cajun recipes. 

I still get these veggies frequently on sale for less than a dollar each or a dollar per pound.

Okra might not be to everyone's taste as it becomes slimy after cooking for a while, but I like it fine. 

Cajuns serve their Gumbo over white steamed rice. I've had it over brown rice and even quinoa.

Duck is way more expensive than chicken, so this is a recipe for special occasions if you are a cheap$kate like me. 

Hey, you can always substitute budget chicken dark meat for pungent Duck in my Easy Duck Gumbo recipe.

Easy Duck Gumbo Recipe - Video            Play it here, video runs 4 minutes, 33 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients (4 to 6 servings)

Water - 8 cups.  Okay to use less water to reach your favorite thick or thin Gumbo. At the end of cooking, you can decide if you want more water. For a thicker Gumbo, uncover and cook 15 minutes at the end.

3/4 Cup Roux - I used a store-bought Roux for this recipe. For a homemade Roux, use 3/4 cup flour and oil. Over medium heat, stir flour and oil until it reaches a brown-to-dark brown color, about 20 minutes.

Leftover Duck - about 2 pounds. Cooked Duck is a mix of dark and white meat. For raw Duck pieces, boil with the ingredients for about 2 hours to cook through and tenderize. 

Oil - 1 tablespoon, any favorite.

1 Onion - chopped.

Garlic - 1 tablespoon.

1 Bell Pepper - chopped.

Celery - about 2 chopped ribs.

Okra - about 8 to 12 whole okra spears. I slice okra depending on how large they are. Okay to leave a few whole. Some do not like okra (and it can be hard to find), so it's okay to leave it out.

Creole Seasoning - 1 teaspoon. Creole seasoning is usually a combination of salt, paprika or chile powder, dried garlic, and onion. 

Black Pepper - 1 teaspoon.

Filé Powder - 1 teaspoon, optional. Filé is dried sassafras leaves. 

Steamed Rice - Rice - serve Gumbo over cooked white or brown rice. I usually boil a cup or two of rice.

*Homemade Gumbo with Chicken and Sausage, and  Roast Duck recipe links are at the end of this recipe text.

Directions

In a medium hot pot, add oil and chopped onion, bell pepper, and celery. Sauté for 2 minutes. 

Add a tablespoon of chopped garlic and saute for one minute.

Sprinkle on a teaspoon of Creole Seasoning and Gumbo Filé Powder. If you do not have these, then leave them out. Add some salt and pepper instead of Creole Seasoning.

Mix well and saute the Roux Mix for a minute. Add chopped and whole okra. 

Pour on some of the Duck drippings from a roasting pan, if you have any left over. Okay to leave some out, as duck renders a lot of fat.

Fill the pot with 8 cups of water. Mix well to dissolve the Roux.

Add duck pieces and bring broth to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover the pot.

Simmer Gumbo for an hour. If you are using raw duck pieces, then simmer for 2 hours or until the raw duck is cooked through. For raw duck, you want to remove most of the skin as it is very fatty. I would leave some on, as it is extra flavor.

After one hour (for cooked duck) or two (if the duck is raw), remove the large Duck pieces. I like to shred the Duck and return it to the Gumbo. Reheat shredded Duck for a few minutes. 

Serve Duck Gumbo over cooked rice or a favorite grain like quinoa.

My Mom's Homemade Chicken and Sausage Gumbo: 

https://the99centchef.blogspot.com/2011/07/moms-gumbo-recipe-and-flea-market-food.html

Roast Duck Recipe: https://the99centchef.blogspot.com/2024/02/roast-duck-video-recipe.html

Peach Pancakes - Recipe Video

Peach Pancakes can be made with fresh or canned fruit. I like canned peaches with fruit juice or lightly sweetened. Canned fruit can get very mushy when cooked, but Peaches hold up quite well when mixed into pancake batter and sauteed.

I like to eat the peel on my fresh fruit, which canned peaches remove. Even without the fuzzy texture, sliced peaches, fresh or from the can, have plenty of peachy flavor.

Canned Peaches and fresh ones are still cheap enough for this Budget Epicurean. Make sure to wait for fresh Peaches to ripen soft.

No special tricks to this recipe, I just add sliced Peaches to a lightly oiled heating pan and pour on pancake batter

My recipe is basic; I use premixed pancakes from the box. Nothing special really. The average mix is usually just enriched flour, sugar, dried egg, and milk. Normally, you just add water. You can use your favorite mix, or even a homemade one. If price is no object, then get organic from Whole Foods or from your fave health food market.

I do like to finish my pancake with a pat of real butter. It's up to you if you want to go that far. 

Check out my tasty breakfast, Pancakes made with sliced Peaches. I like to start my day with a sweet fruit.

Peach Pancake Recipe - Video

Play it here, video runs 1 minute, 44 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients (2 servings, using a pancake mix)

• 1 cup pancake mix - any favorite
• 3/4 cup water - okay to use milk for a richer pancake batter.
• 1 peach sliced - add as many slices as you like.
• 1 tablespoon of cooking oil - to grease the skillet. Add more when needed, depending on how many pancakes you make.
• Butter and your favorite pancake syrup - add as much as you like.

Directions
Prepare pancake batter according to package directions. My pancake mix calls for 1 cup of flour and 3/4 cup of water.

Mix pancake ingredients in a bowl. When mixed, it will be like thick country gravy.

(If you are using frozen blueberries, it's okay to add them right to the batter. Defrosted or not, as they will warm up during pancake cooking.)

Add a teaspoon of oil to the pan or griddle. Heat the pan over medium heat.

Slice a fresh peach and remove the seed. For canned Peaches, just drain. Okay to slice peaches into smaller pieces. Large slices tend to separate from the pancake.

 Arrange on a hot pan or griddle. Add as many as you like, depending on the size of each pancake.

Brown pancakes for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, depending on the pan heat. When you see air pockets, then check the bottom of the pancake to see how it's browning.

The instant box of pancake directions mentions cooking time to brown each side as 1.5 minutes each....hmmm, they must be using a super hot pan! Best to just check the pancake for color as you go.

If you want a dark brown pancake presentation, then cook one side to get the right hue of brown, then cook the other side for a minute to finish. Serve browned side up on the plate.

420 Celebration - High Times & Recipes

Acapulco Gold, Texas Tea, Panama Red, Maui Wowie, Mary Jane, chronic, ganja, pot, weed, grass, kush, herb, joint, blunt, roach, cannabis, reefer, spliff, fatty, jay, doobie, and locoweed are just some of the euphemisms for marijuana.

Click on any photo to see larger.

Many local pot shops have a green cross or green type somewhere on their building. This comes from when marijuana was first legal in L.A. for medical purposes only - I guess it's a play on the Red Cross?

420 Coast to Coast

Venice, Los Angeles

East Village, New York City

Amsterdam, Netherlands

This day 420 is celebrated with pot shop gift bags (given with a minimum purchase) and free handouts. 

Last year, Easter was on 4/20 - eggcellent!

Fast food joints are cashing in this year with 420-themed edible deals, so get your munchies on! Los Angeles has started many classic hamburger franchises like McDonald's, In-N-Out Burger, and an underground local favorite, Fatburger. And this burger is the bomb.

Here is my local marijuana dispensary, just down the street, where there's usually a line on this underground holiday. It's a cash-only business because banks will not service Marijuana dispensaries due to the Federal classification of Marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, the same as hard drugs like heroin, cocaine, and LSD. I often see a security guard stationed at pot shops. 

I'm not the Wake-and-Bake type, and I don't blaze up every day or night.

Hemp products have a following.

If you're out of the loop, 420 or April (4th month) and day 20, is an international celebration of all things marijuana. The term "420" supposedly originated in 1971 here in California by a bunch of high school buddies who would meet at 4:20pm to smoke weed. You can read about it here.

Los Angeles marijuana shops are open to anyone 21 years or older with a government-issued ID. If younger, you need a medical prescription and must be accompanied by an adult to enter or shop in a marijuana dispensary.

Rewards Cards

When California introduced medical marijuana legally in 1996, I waited a couple of years before I got a prescription. Like a lot of locals, I was paranoid about putting my name in a database of users. But after a while, I realized that I'm never gonna run for President or head the FBI.

FYI, my medical condition was a pain in the...elbow.

Getting a prescription was a farce. Pay the doctor $100 bucks, pick your ailment, and walk out with legal papers. That song and dance is no longer played.

There are rules when entering an L.A. pot shop, besides showing your ID. First, no phones, although everyone carries one. That means no photography, but of course, that has never stopped me, yet!

I get it, but I had to think twice the first time I saw the above sign.

Even man's best friend can be treated with cannabis. Not sure if they must provide a California ID?

Dogs' Best Friend?

Louisiana is entering the Stoned Age since decriminalizing Marijuana in 2021. I visited a Marijuana Dispensary in Baton Rouge, right down the street from a large Medical Center. 

The dispensary, Capitol Wellness Solutions, was like entering a bank or a high-end jewelry store with waist-high glass cases displaying all manner of marijuana packaging and paraphernalia. All the goodies are behind a pharmacist's counter. Every age of adult was there, from dyed to gray hair.

It's legal in Louisiana for medical use only...so far. And, this is coming from a State where Magic Mushrooms grow in cow fields and on the Mississippi levee. And buying pot was as easy as calling a "high" school classmate for a fat $10 baggie of "skunk" weed.

I've been a contributing citizen to the economy and a creative artist most of my life, so all the boogeyman stories of reefer madness don't fly here. As far as a gateway drug, does alcohol count?

When I was in high school, I primarily used it when listening to music, as it was the 1960's and getting high brought a heightened experience and meaning to the lyrical and sonic content of songs by The Beatles, Rolling Stones, The Kinks, Jefferson Airplane, Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan, etc.

And it was just a fun thing to do with friends on the weekend and long summer dazes.

Just watch my Mom's recipe for Tex-Mex Enchiladas to see my high school buddy Marvin and me have a 1960s flashback hanging out and listening to album rock in my bedroom.

These days, I like a cannabis-infused edible from time to time. They will last a couple of hours, just right for an art show, movie, or musical concert at the Hollywood Bowl. 

Like alcohol, cannabis has similar laws and penalties for public intoxication and operating machinery/automobiles.

Check out some of the concerts I've seen there, including a Willie Nelson concert where I've never smelled so much marijuana in my life!

I'll leave you with another recipe should you be in need of some munchies while celebrating 420  - that is, not my recipe, but one from my brother from another daddy, the Swamp Chef! Check out a tasty cheesy Cajun Nachos video made with nephew Zak!

Cajun Natchos calls for cooked crawfish tail meat, but it's easy to substitute small shrimp, a can of chili, or any favorite protein.