Feb 12, 2013

Chicken and Andouille Sausage



A chicken and sausage stew made with skinless chicken legs and spicy andouille sausage simmered with flavors from the deep south – without the extra fat.

Today is Fat Tuesday, but any day is really a great day to enjoy this comfort dish. Traditional gumbos are made with a whole lot of fat and take hours to make. My lighter version you won't miss the fat because there's still tons of flavor. The stew itself is not very spicy, but the sausage is so you get a little heat each time you take a bite. If you're not a fan of spice, a smoked turkey sausage or turkey kielbasa would taste great too.

To lighten this dish, I use lean skinless chicken on the bone (the bone adds great flavor) and lean chicken/turkey andouille sausage. It's simmered with onions, bell pepper and celery, also known as the "holy trinity" in Cajun cuisine, and topped with scallions. This is the type of dish you may want to serve with a fork AND spoon, I served mine with 1/4 cup of cooked rice on the side, completely optional. Quinoa or farro would also work nicely.

I found the chicken a little tricky to calculate on the bone; I was getting discrepancies when I calculated it raw, vs cooked on the bone, vs cooked off the bone so I decided to weigh the meat off the bone cooked, I feel this is the most accurate. The chicken I purchased was from a small bird, so if you have really large chicken, the nutritional info will change. If you prefer white meat, be sure to use skinless breasts on the bone so your meat doesn't dry out and you still get the great flavors from the bones.

Low carb, gluten free, and really good!




Chicken and Andouille Sausage
Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 4 • Size: 4 oz chicken, 3 oz sausage + broth • Old Pts: 8 • Points+: 9 pts
Calories: 347.5 • Fat: 13 g • Protein: 47 g • Carb: 8 g • Fiber: 2 g • Sugar: 1 g
Sodium: 490 mg (without salt)

Ingredients:

  • 2 tsp oil
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
  • 1/4 cup chopped celery
  • 14 oz (4) lean skinless chicken thighs, with bone*
  • 12 oz (4) lean skinless chicken drumsticks, with bone**
  • salt and fresh pepper, to taste
  • 1 tbsp all-purpose flour (rice flour for gluten-free)
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 links (6 oz) andouille chicken/turkey sausage (Applegate)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/4 cup chopped scallion

Directions:

Heat a large deep non-stick skillet over medium heat. When hot, add the oil, onions, peppers and celery. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, stirring.


Push the vegetables to the edges of the skillet and add the chicken, season with salt and pepper. Brown 2 to 3 minutes on each side, then sprinkle the flour over the chicken and vegetables.


Add the water, sausage and bay leaf, adjust salt and pepper to taste, then cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer 30 to 35 minutes, remove bay leaf and top with scallions. Serve with rice or quinoa if desired.


*thighs were 10 oz total weight cooked, off the bone
**drumsticks were 6 oz total weight cooked, off the bone
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59 comments:

  1. Yum! Looks so good!

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  2. Definitely on my to-do list! I have yet to make something from your site that isn't stellar! Thanks for the recipes and keep 'em coming!
    xo, Erica
    http://shopstyletherapy.com/

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  3. It's actually the "holy trinity": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_trinity_(cuisine).

    But no matter. Looks delicious.

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    Replies
    1. Not feeling well today, but that's totally what I meant.

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  4. I know you said on the bone adds flavor but I have some boneless thighs to use up so this sounds perfect for tonight. Fat Tuesday kinda crept up on me!

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  5. Looks great. Applegate Farms rocks! I love their products.

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  6. Oh, this looks wonderful!! I loooove your site! I make several of your recipes on a regular basis, Crock Pot Sante Fe Chicken to name just one, I know the recipe by heart! EVERY recipe I have tried has been fabulous! Chicken rollatini is another favorite. Thanks for sharing your talents!! Happy Fat Tuesday everyone!!

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  7. How would it work with chicken breasts?

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    1. Since they are larger, I might make 3 breasts, on the bone and cook it for a little less time. I would still serve 4 oz of chicken per person.

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  8. I was just introduced to this site in January and have already made 8 dishes. EVERY recipe has been great. Steak and Cheese Sandwiches with Onions and Mushrooms are on the menu tonight!

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  9. I love love love your site! Everything looks delish -- I am going to try this one, but wondered how to adapt to the crockpot? Any helpful hints?

    Thanks!

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    Replies
    1. I would still saute the vegetables and chicken, add the flour then add it all to the crock pot, low 6 to 8 hours should be fine.

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  10. I really appreciate this recipe and I'm inspired to try it. What can I use as substitute for the sausage as there is none in my neck of the world??

    Lisa

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    Replies
    1. Use a smoked turkey kielbasa or a spicy chicken sausage.

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  11. I am so going to be making this tonight- such a delicious, guilt-free dish :)

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  12. Do you take the chicken off the bone after your done cooking? I haven't used legs and thighs a lot they will cook on simmer?

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  13. I was just looking for something festive to celebrate Mardi Gras.. you know, in a way that didn't involve flashing my husband. I'm super excited about this recipe! My husband will get over the disappointment once tastes this I'm sure ;)

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  14. This looks awesome. But I think your protein total is off -- I get closer to 35g/serving when I do the numbers!

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    1. perhaps I made a typo, thanks I will check.

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  15. I just made this, but added some Tony Chachere's in with the water (living in New Orleans, it goes on just about everything), and I used fresh andouille sausage from my local grocer, and it was phenomenal. I'm picky about my cajun eating because I've had the best, but this was a great dish. I will definitely be making this again!

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    1. I'm so glad you approved, being Latin I make chicken stew all the time, so I simply made it the same way, just swapped out the flavor profiles for Cajun ones.

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  16. This was devoured by my family - including my kids (6 & 8). I thought it would be too spicy for them but they each took down two glasses of water & my oldest (8) asked for seconds on dinner (something she never does). The fact that they didn't complain about the visible green peppers & celery showed how much they loved it. Thanks for another great meal!

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    Replies
    1. That makes me so happy! It's really not spicy, only when you eat the sausage which is a medium heat. We really enjoyed it too.

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  17. Delicious!! I added frozen okra at the end and Cajun spice as I browned the chicken. Yum!!

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  18. Gina, your dish looks wonderful!!!! I never seen that kind of sausage! I can't wait to try this dish out!

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    Replies
    1. I've seen other brands carry a turkey andouille as well, use what you can find.

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  19. Sorry for the stupid question:

    just wanna confirm if the calorie count is per serving?

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  20. Hey Gina!

    A random question - what size is that skillet? I'm in the market for a big 'un and am trying to figure out how big is too big.

    Thanks!

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    Replies
    1. I love that skillet, it's actually Emeril's but I'm not sure of the size, it's pretty big.

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  21. how can I make it spicier, Gina?

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    Replies
    1. Cayenne pepper! Slap your Mama is a good brand.

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  22. As a New Orleans native, this looks awesome! Please conitnue to post light versions of NOLA recipes! I also love your cajun pasta (i do it with shrimp vs chicken). Somh you can add spice without calories with some cayenne pepper, that's how we do it!

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  23. Definitely making this doubled so my bf can eat left overs through the week while im gone!

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  24. I made this dish tonight. It was quite easy and delicious and looked and tasted more complicated than it was. It got thumbs up from everyone at the table. Thanks, Gina, for another great recipe!

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  25. Gina, I went to my organic market and they didn't have drumsticks, so I just got 2 packages of chicken thighs. Can that be substituted? Also, they carry lots of Applegate products, but not the andouille sausage. I can either get another brand of Andouille (organic) but it's not chicken/turkey OR I can get another brand (Al Fresca, etc.) of chicken/turkey sausage. What are your thoughts about substitution.

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  26. Wow thank you!!! I'm currently on the Arbonne 28 Day Detox Diet, which is really strict but I feel great! This recipe works as long as you use brown rice flour. I love finding different things I can try. Thank you!

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  27. Update: I used 6 chicken thighs and subbed the organic hot sausage. I'm sure the flavor was slightly different b/c of this but we still thought it was fantastic. It was a little over 400 calories a serving vs. yours. YUM!

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  28. Going to Add a 1/2 pound of scrimp and give it a gumbo flavor :<)

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  29. Joy Gallagher2/16/13, 10:26 PM

    Made this tonight and its a fam fave!! One of my Top fave of your Site! I cook almost exclusively from Skinnytaste. Thank you!!

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  30. this was absolutely AMAZING!! Made it for valentines day and it was to DIE for!!

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  31. Hi Gina,

    Your blog is awesome! I'm very much looking forward to trying some of your low carb recipes...thanks! Frank

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  32. Delicious! Made this last night and it was so yummy!! I absolutely Love your blog!



    Hoping to get back into blogging soon but looking for some inspiration! check it out if you like! http://ajapgirlsguidetolife.blogspot.com/

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  33. Also, do you mind if I share this recipe and your blog on Google+ ? I will also pin the recipe!

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  34. As a 100% Cajun gal- this is pretty much right on par with what my mother calls "smothered chicken" with rice & gravy but it isn't healthy at all because she uses full fat sausage and leaves the skin on the chicken!

    And now you have me wanting to cook this much healthier version very soon! Great job Gina! :)

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  35. If I were to make this with chicken breast instead, what would the calorie intake be?

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  36. We have had this twice already, thanks to a 10# bag of chicken thighs and legs. The longer it sits, the better it tastes. Delicious meal.

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  37. This was amazing! I read the comments before I made it and decided to add Tony Chachere's seasoning to the chicken instead of salt and pepper, which worked to great effect. I also added two diced jalapenos (that I had on hand) in with the rest of the veggies to add some additional spice as all I could find sausage-wise was turkey kielbasa. The whole thing was perfect! And I look forward to the leftovers for lunch today. Thanks for another great recipe!!!
    --Ashley

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  38. I have been using your website since October of last year and I finally had to make a comment. I love all of your recipes, but this one takes the cake! It is so tasty, and I just finished making another batch (made the first one last week) because it was just that good. I added in some frozen okra and shrimp towards the end and it just makes the dish that much better.

    Thanks so much for creating this blog! I am not on a diet or anything, but I wanted to start eating more healthily and this website really makes it super easy and super tasty. I feel great when the bulk of my shopping purchases happen in the produce section!

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  39. I made it tonight just as the recipe says, and it was delish! Added turkey kielbasa for my two year olds, but they actually liked the andouille also!

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  40. I wish I could find andouille. Spicy italian will have to do.

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