Gumbo

Ingredients

• 1 tender, fat chicken, nearly grown
• salt and pepper
• 0.5 pound bacon
• 2 thick slices ham
• 2 onions
• 6 large ripe tomatoes
• 0.5 large pod mild red pepper
• 1 teaspoon thyme and parsley mixed
• 1 pint okra
• 3 quarts water

Instructions

1. Cut the chicken into joints and season well with salt and pepper. Fry the chicken for ten minutes in the fat rendered from half a pound of bacon, using two thick slices of ham as well.
2. Add the chopped onions and cook until softened. Add the peeled and chopped tomatoes with their juice, the mild red pepper cut small, and the minced thyme and parsley mixed together. Stir in the okra, stemmed and cut lengthwise.
3. Cook everything together, watching constantly and stirring to prevent scorching, until well-browned.
4. Add three quarts of fresh-boiled water on the full boil. Set the pot where it will barely simmer and cook for an hour longer, taking the same care against scorching.
5. Serve with rice cooked separately: wash rice until the water runs clear, drain it, then toss into a wide kettle of boiling salted water and cook for twenty minutes. Drain in a colander, set in the oven for a minute, and serve with plenty of butter. The grains should stand out separate but be very tender.