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Home » Recipes » Dish Type » Soups, Stew & Chili Recipes

Chicken Gumbo Soup Recipe

Published: Jan 24, 2023 by Terri Gilson · Modified: Jan 24, 2023 · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This post may contain affiliate links · Leave a Comment

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chicken gumbo soup in a black bowl with a piece of buttered rye bread on the side

This Chicken Gumbo Soup Recipe (with okra) is an easy, healthy, lighter and WW friendly version of Chicken Gumbo. It's a flavorful and hearty soup that's made with chicken breast and turkey pepperoni, with okra serving as the natural thickener.

chicken gumbo soup in a black bowl with a piece of buttered rye bread on the side

This healthy gumbo recipe is especially popular in the fall and winter and pairs well with this Everything Bagel Cloud Bread Recipe.

Jump to:
  • 🥘Ingredients
  • 🔪Instructions
  • 📖Variations & Substitutions
  • 🥗 Side Dishes
  • 🍽Equipment
  • 🌡️Storage
  • 👪 Serving Size
  • 🔢WW Points
  • 💭Top tip
  • 🦺Food safety
  • 📋 Chicken Gumbo Soup Recipe

Gumbo actually originated in West Africa, although most people associate it with New Orleans and Louisiana, where it was popularized. There are 2 types of gumbo: Creole and Cajun.

Creole gumbos often includes tomatoes, shellfish, dark roux, and often okra and filé powder, whereas Cajun gumbo usually contains chicken and no tomatoes. Both Creole and Cajun gumbos can include meats such as ham or sausage. My version of gumbo soup is a hybrid since it has tomatoes, chicken, okra, sausage (pepperoni), and no roux. It's not only healthy, but it's also quick and easy, whereas gumbos traditionally cook all day long.

🥘Ingredients

Many gumbo recipes use a roux (a mixture of flour and fat) or gumbo filé, which is a spicy herb mix made from the dried and ground leaves of the North American sassafras tree, to thicken it. I use okra because it's a natural thickener and lends a depth of flavor unlike anything else. I don't use a roux because it's unnecessary calories.

Celery, onions, and bell peppers are what is known as the "holy trinity" in gumbo.

For this gumbo recipe, you'll need:

ingredients in Cajun Chicken gumbo soup, in glass bowls, labelled
  • 2 lb chicken breast 4 breasts
  • ⅓ lb turkey pepperoni about 5 sticks
  • 1 whole green bell pepper chopped
  • 1 bunch green onions
  • 1.5 cups okra About ½ lb fresh okra
  • 28 oz canned diced tomatoes
  • 6 cups chicken broth *I use chicken bouillon mixed with water
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1 tsp cajun seasoning
  • ¼ tsp celery seed
  • ½ tsp onion powder
  • 2 tsp minced garlic
  • ½ cup instant rice (I use white rice)

*see recipe card for additional details

🔪Instructions

Prep: Spray a dutch oven or skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Alternatively, you could use a little olive oil.

cubed, raw chicken in an orange Dutch oven

Chop chicken and place in Dutch oven or pot

cooked, cubed chicken breast in an orange Dutch oven

Cook over medium-high heat until cooked through- about 5 minutes

All chicken gumbo soup ingredients in a pot, except rice

Add all remaining ingredients to pot with chicken (except rice)

Chicken gumbo soup in a pot, mixed together

Stir ingredients together.

ingredients brought to a boil

Bring to a boil, then immediately turn down to simmer, cover with lid and cook for 15- 20 minutes or until vegetables are soft/tender, but not completely cooked through.

rice added to soup

Add rice and bring to a boil once again.

Immediately turn down to simmer (medium - low), cover with lid and cook for an additional 10 minutes or until rice is cooked.

*Remove bay leaves before serving.

📖Variations & Substitutions

  • Vegetarian - leave out the meat and use vegetable broth
  • Spicy - add sriracha sauce or the hot sauce of your choice!
  • Deluxe - add shrimp
  • Celery seed - you can use actual celery instead but I don't recommend you use celery salt, as it will make it too salty
  • Turkey pepperoni - you could use regular pepperoni, turkey sausage, regular sausage, or andouille sausage instead
  • Chicken - you could use a store-bought rotisserie chicken, shredded chicken, or chicken thighs
  • Rice - you could use brown rice instead. You could also use regular short grain rice or long grain rice (not instant) but you'll need to put it in at the beginning (when you put in all the vegetables)
  • Chicken broth - you can use store-bought or homemade chicken broth
  • Onions - you could use white onion instead of green onion

🥗 Side Dishes

This gumbo soup goes well with salad or bread. Try it with the following:

  • Everything Bagel Cloud bread - 0 WW points
  • Spinach Salad
  • Mandarin Orange Salad Recipe
  • Biscuits
6 pieces of everything bagel cloud bread stacked on top of each other

🍽Equipment

I make this healthy chicken gumbo recipe in a large Dutch oven (I use a 6 quart) because you can brown the meat in the same pot as you cook the soup in (that's the beauty of a Dutch oven). Then it's a one-pot meal! However, you could use a skillet to brown the meat and a soup pot. Or cook in a slow cooker (affiliate links) on low for 2 hours.

I also LOVE my silicone trivets (affiliate link)! They are easy to clean (dishwasher safe) and rated to 600 degrees F (315 degrees C).

chicken gumbo soup in an orange dutch oven with a soup ladle in pot

🌡️Storage

Store this gumbo soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. However, the longer it sits, the thicker it will get. You may want to add additional stock before serving, if it's been sitting for a couple of days.

You can freeze this soup for up to 3 months in airtight containers.

👪 Serving Size

This recipe makes 8 servings. However, you can half, double or triple the recipe by clicking on the blue serving number and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust.

Cajun chicken gumbo soup in a black bowl, with a spoon holding up some soup

🔢WW Points

This easy recipe is very Weight Watchers friendly @ 2 WW points per serving! The turkey pepperoni and the rice are the only ingredients that have a point value. All the other ingredients are 0 points, if you use fat-free chicken broth.

💭Top tip

Freezing leftover okra

You may have okra left over, so you'll want to preserve it. I recommend slicing it before you freeze. I have tried freezing it whole, but found that it gets too gooey to cut once it defrosts.

First, wash it and cut off the ends, then cut it into circles.

okra being sliced on a white cutting board

Next, spread it out in one layer on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.

sliced okra on a parchment covered baking sheet

Freeze for 4 hours.

Then transfer to a labeled/dated freezer bag and return to the freezer for up to 3 months

🦺Food safety

  • Cook chicken breast to an internal minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
  • Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
  • Wash hands after touching raw meat
  • Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
  • Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
  • Never leave cooking food unattended

    See more guidelines at USDA.gov 

If you are looking for an easy and healthy Chicken Gumbo soup recipe, you'll love this one!

chicken gumbo soup in a black bowl with a piece of buttered rye bread on the side
Food Meandering Logo

📋 Chicken Gumbo Soup Recipe

This flavorful and hearty Chicken Gumbo soup is a lightened-up hybirid of Creole and Cajun Gumbo. Made with chicken breast and turkey pepperoni, okra is the natural thickener. It's quick and easy to make in one pot, as well as WW friendly!
Print Pin Rate
Course: Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine: American, southern
Keyword: chicken, gumbo, soup
Special Diet: Dairy-free, Weight Watchers
Allergen: lactose
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 236kcal
Author: Terri Gilson
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Prevent your screen from going dark

Equipment

Dutch oven
pile of varied colored trivets stacked up
trivets

Ingredients

  • 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast 4 -5 breasts
  • ¼ lb turkey pepperoni, chopped into circles about 4-5 sticks
  • 1 whole green pepper, chopped
  • 1 bunch green onions
  • 1.5 cups okra *about ½ lb fresh okra
  • 28 oz canned diced tomatoes
  • 6 cups chicken broth
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon cayenne
  • 1 teaspoon cajun seasoning
  • ¼ teaspoon celery seed
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • 2 teaspoon minced garlic
  • ½ cup instant rice
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Spray a dutch oven or skillet with non-stick cooking spray.
  • Chop chicken and place in Dutch oven or pot
    cubed, raw chicken in an orange Dutch oven
  • cook over medium-high heat until cooked through- about 5 minutes
    cooked, cubed chicken breast in an orange Dutch oven
  • Add all remaining ingredients to pot with chicken (except rice)
    All chicken gumbo soup ingredients in a pot, except rice
  • Stir ingredients together
    Chicken gumbo soup in a pot, mixed together
  • Bring to a boil over hight heat, then immediately turn down to simmer, cover with lid and cook for 15- 20 minutes or until vegetables are soft/tender, but not completely cooked through.
    ingredients brought to a boil
  • Add rice and bring to a boil once again.
    rice added to soup
  • Immediately turn down to simmer (medium - low), cover with lid and cook for an additional 10 minutes or until rice is cooked through.
    Remove each bay leaf before serving.
    cooked chicken gumbo soup in an orange Dutch oven with a ladle in it and lid in background

Notes

Nutrition Facts
📋 Chicken Gumbo Soup Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 236 Calories from Fat 63
% Daily Value*
Fat 7g11%
Saturated Fat 2g13%
Trans Fat 0.01g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g
Monounsaturated Fat 2g
Cholesterol 111mg37%
Sodium 1456mg63%
Potassium 846mg24%
Carbohydrates 8g3%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 35g70%
Vitamin A 561IU11%
Vitamin C 16mg19%
Calcium 72mg7%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
*See post contents for important recipe information, tips and substitutions!
Adapted from Cajun Chicken Gumbo, P. 73, Cooking with Tradition

Nutrition

Calories: 236kcal (12%) | Carbohydrates: 8g (3%) | Protein: 35g (70%) | Fat: 7g (11%) | Saturated Fat: 2g (13%) | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 111mg (37%) | Sodium: 1456mg (63%) | Potassium: 846mg (24%) | Fiber: 2g (8%) | Sugar: 4g (4%) | Vitamin A: 561IU (11%) | Vitamin C: 16mg (19%) | Calcium: 72mg (7%) | Iron: 3mg (17%)
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I'm Terri, a passionate home cook and baker, an award-winning recipe developer and a busy working mom that is trying to eat healthy and fit everything into not enough hours in a day! My mission is to share not only my recipes, cooking hacks and tips with you, but also my secrets to successful weight maintenance.

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