Instant Pot Gumbo is so easy to make! Loaded with sausage, chicken and shrimp, this gumbo is BURSTING with creole flavors!
Instant Pot Gumbo
Instant Pot Gumbo is the perfect meal for a COLD day. Thick and hearty with a kick of creole spice that warms your insides. The Southern comfort food originates in Southern Louisiana. It can be made SO many different ways most gumbo dishes start with a basic, dark roux, peppers, onions, and celery. You can add a protein such as sausage, chicken, or shrimp as well. Or all three. I have tried several different varieties of gumbo over the years, but my favorite includes chicken, sausage, AND shrimp. I simply can’t pick a favorite meat to put in; I love them all! True gumbo is usually thickened with okra and/or filé powder in addition to the roux. It really depends on your taste. Try it and see for yourself. You will love this recipe!
Additions and Substitutions for Instant Pot Gumbo
Instant Pot Gumbo can be changed up a million different ways, depending on your tastes and preferences. Follow the recipe as directed below for a spicy flavor and all the meats! But you can experiment with spices and other ingredients to make it exactly how you and your family like it.
- Feel free to omit one or more of the meats. Sausage only, just chicken and shrimp, etc. Or go all out and add crab meat, lobster, whatever you like!
- Some may argue that tomatoes do not belong in gumbo when others love the added flavor of tomatoes. I really think there is no wrong way. Personally, I am not the biggest fan of okra, so it is something I usually leave out. Make it according to your tastes, be creative, and you won’t be disappointed!
- To make this gumbo gluten-free the most obvious choice would be to use a gluten-free flour in the place of regular all-purpose flour in the roux. We use Namaste flour from Costco or a homemade flour blend when substituting flour. If you want to avoid making a roux, you can always use filé powder and/or okra to thicken instead. The Tony Chachere’s seasoning is GF so you should be good using that as your Creole seasoning in this recipe.
- You can make this recipe in a pressure cooker too. If your cooker doesn’t have a saute function, just saute your veggies and sausage in a separate pan, then add to the pressure cooker and follow the directions as listed below.
More Delicious Instant Pot Recipes
- Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage
- Sunday Pot Roast (Instant Pot Recipe
- Easiest Instant Pot Meatballs
- Instant Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup
- Instant Pot Goulash
How to Make Instant Pot Gumbo
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 1 onion diced
- 1 cup celery chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 13.5 ounces Andouille sausage cut into rounds
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1/3 cup butter
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1 pound chicken cubed
- 2 teaspoons Creole seasoning (or to taste, we used Tony Chachere's)
- 10 ounces diced tomatoes with green chiles (aka Rotel tomatoes)
- 14 ounces fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt (or to taste)
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)
- 1 cup okra sliced
- 1 pound shrimp peeled, deveined
- 4 cups cooked rice
Instructions
- Set Instant Pot to "Saute" function and add olive oil.
- Add peppers, onion, celery, garlic, and sausage.
- Saute for 3-5 minutes or until vegetables become soft.
- Remove all vegetables and sausage. Set aside.
- Immediately add butter to instant pot and stir, scraping up any cooked bits from the bottom of the pot. When butter is melted, add flour.
- Cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly until dark brown, forming a roux. Turn cooker off.
- Add chicken broth, cooked vegetables and sausage, chicken, Creole seasoning, diced tomatoes with chiles, fire roasted tomatoes, bay leaves, salt and pepper.
- Close and lock the lid of the Instant Pot. Turn the steam release handle to “Sealing” position.
- Press "Manual" and select “High Pressure." Set time to 20 minutes. When time is up, turn cooker off.
- Quick release by turning valve to "venting".
- When pressure is fully released, remove lid and stir in okra. Press "Saute", and cook uncovered for 5 minutes. Add shrimp and cook an additional 5 minutes or until shrimp is cooked through.
- Remove and discard bay leaves. Serve with rice.
Equipment
- Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
Carolyn says
What nis instant pot that is mentioned in the receipes?
Favorite Family Recipes says
It is a specific brand of pressure cooker. Hope this helps!
Diane says
When you say melt the butter and then put in the flour how do you get that mixture to a dark brown? I never could get those two ingredients to the color I thought it should have been. TIA
Erica Walker says
It gets more brown as it cooks. Most of the time mine just gets to a dark golden brown. Like a caramel color. Hope this helps!
Michelle says
I’ve been cooking cajun food for 40 years. I use oil and flour and stir on low until the roux is the color of a burnished penny. I sit one beside the pot so I’m not tempted to cheat. Takes about 25 minutes to get it the dark chocolate flavor I want. It’s well worth the time. Good luck! I’ve got my first Instapot batch cooking now.
Angie says
It’s Tony not Johnny on the seasoning
Favorite Family Recipes says
Ah! You are totally right. I was getting my seasonings mixed up! Thanks for catching that. Changing it now 🙂
Vincent Tan says
Excellent and easy recipe to follow. Gumbo was a success on the first try!
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad this worked out so great for you! Thanks for the 5-stars!
Rebekah says
This recipe gave us amazing results. My girls had been asking for gumbo, and this absolutely delivered. This recipe was very easy to follow and smelled perfectly delightful from the start. I’ve never had so many helpers in the kitchen trying to snitch a taste as it cooked.
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad you liked the gumbo! Thanks for the nice comment!
Jennifer Butler says
#4….Press what?
Favorite Family Recipes says
Whoops! Missed that typo! Fixed it 😉 Thanks for catching that.
Kelly Alley says
I cooked this last night for my wife in our Instant Pot and it is delicious.
We substituted Sweet Italian sausage to limit the heat factor and didn’t use shrimp.
It was easy to follow the directions and it was outstanding.
We’ll definitely make it again. Thank you
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad you liked it! Thanks Kelly!
Bina Mistry says
I cooked the roux for 15 mins and is still not dark. .. is that OK?
Favorite Family Recipes says
Yes, that should be ok. It may affect the appearance (it will just be lighter) but it will taste the same! Hope this helps!
Lisa says
a darker roux is a richer flavor. should be a nice deep brown without burning. ( according to the NO school of cooking!) I usually use oil rather than butter.
Cera M Smith says
What Lisa said, the color of the roux most definitely affects the flavor. You need an oil with a higher smoke point than butter, canola is ideal.
Ryan says
Made it tonight. Homerun! My wife wasn’t crazy about gumbo, until I made this. It blew her mind. I cut some French bread in thin slices and coated them in olive oil and garlic powder and baked them for 15 min. at 400 and used as dipping toast for the gumbo sauce in the bowl. It gives you something to savor while you wait for it to cool down.
Erica says
So glad you liked it Ryan! Thanks for the tip about the French bread and for the 5-stars!
Patti Glispin Mullins says
This was outstNding!! Will definitely make again!!!
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad you liked it! 😀 Thanks for the 5-stars!
esqueue says
Came out great. I probably overpaid for the ingredients but it made quite a bit of food. I’ll have leftovers for quite some time. Thanks!!
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad you liked it! It heats up great, especially when you heat it up on the stovetop. 😀
Damon says
Ten minutes prep and 35 minutes cooking. That has got to be the lamest gumbo I’ve ever seen.
Linda says
It was pretty surprising how well the flavors came together. Tasted like it had simmered for hours. Prep took WAY more than 10 minutes for me, but I knew it would 🙂
Cera M Smith says
What Lisa said, the color of the roux most definitely affects the flavor. You need an oil with a higher smoke point than butter, canola is ideal.
Tara Malloy says
Overall it was good. I thought prep took over 10 mins. I bought Tony’s more seasoning and would try to make it spicer next time.
Favorite Family Recipes says
Any easy way to make it spicier is just to slap some Sriracha on it. My favorite!
Derek says
First time making gumbo, and this was amazing! Hubby raves about it! Thanks for the recipe! Saved, and will become a new family fave!
Favorite Family Recipes says
Woohoo! So glad you (and the hubby) liked the gumbo! Thanks for taking the time to come back and let us know!
Mary says
Is that cooked chicken or raw chicken you add???
Favorite Family Recipes says
It is raw and cubed when you put it in. Hope this helps!
Kyle says
Where do you mention the shrimp?
Favorite Family Recipes says
The shrimp is added in step 11. Hope his helps!
Elana Binns says
It was a pretty easy recipe to follow, your directions were explained nicely! I added a little tapatio for extra spice and it came out perfect! Thank you for this recipe!
Favorite Family Recipes says
Ooh I love the flavor of Tapatio. Great addition! I will have to try it with Tapatio next time, thanks for sharing!
Edward Butler says
nooooooooo on the Tapatio! lol If you are gonna spice it up with something after its done, you gotta go with CRYSTAL…authentic Louisiana hot!
elana binns says
I’ve never heard of that hot sauce I’ll have to try it! I put extra Creole seasoning plus the tapatio, I’m not a huge fan of tapatio but was just looking for more spice with what i had in the kitchen!
Amy says
“Burn” kept coming on. Afte the second time, I transferred everything to stovetop and finished cooking it there. What did I do wrong? All the liquids were there…
Favorite Family Recipes says
Hmm. that is so strange! Was everything stirred up before you started the IP? Maybe some of the food was just settling at the bottom. Hmmm. Did it seem like there was enough liquid?
Linda says
I got one burn message as well. Opened, stirred (it was a bit stuck on the bottom) and it was fine for me on the second try.
Amber says
I got it too but I’m thinking it was from the flour and butter. I have stirred and recooking. We shall see.
Favorite Family Recipes says
Let us know how it turns out!
Brandi says
I got the burn notice a couple of times as well. I added a little more chicken broth, stirred and tried again. We’ll see if it works now. I think it may have had something to do with the butter and flour too. There’s more than enough liquid.
Erica Walker says
Is your IP getting a good seal? I’m not sure why it is burning. If it seems really liquid-y there shouldn’t be a problem. Is the mixture looking really thick?
Ken Thompson says
Anytime you brown meet you’re going to get some stuck on bits on the bottom. You have to deglaze!! Add a little liquid: beer. Wine, broth (depending on your dish) and scrape it with a flat wooden spatula. Leave the loosened bits and liquids in the pot. Never walk away until it pressurizes and the timer starts. Then it can’t burn.
Sheri says
Omg!!! This is the best homemade gumbo I have ever tasted!!! Thank you sooo much for this delicious recipe! I made it exactly as directions said and it was PERFECT!!!
Favorite Family Recipes says
Wow Sheri, thank you so much for this amazing review! I am so happy to hear you liked this recipe so much 😀 Thanks for the 5-stars!
Andrea says
Hi! Could I use frozen shrimp?
Favorite Family Recipes says
Absolutely! You may just want to cook it a minute or two longer is all. Hope this helps!
Jane says
No amount is given for the okra, or if frozen or fresh, raw or cooked? Why put in after cooking?
Favorite Family Recipes says
This is assuming the okra is fresh and sliced. Adding it at the end makes it so it doesn’t get so mushy. You just want the okra to be fork-tender. If you want to use frozen okra you can add it earlier in the process. You can add it when you add the broth, cooked veggies, etc.. Hope this helps!
Cindy says
Wouldn’t adding frozen okra mush up worse than fresh orka if you add it before you pressure it ?
Favorite Family Recipes says
Possibly– you can add the frozen okra around the same time as the fresh is recommended but you will want to just make sure it cooks through. I have heard of others adding the frozen at the time of the other veggies without complaint so I am assuming it still turns out ok? I have only done it as mentioned in the recipe.
Sheila H says
Best Fumbo Rwcipe yet! We will be making this again!
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad you liked it! Thanks for the 5-stars!
Cassidy Hart says
SO FREAKING GOOD! My new favorite. How much more time would I need to set my instant pot to if I wanted to double this recipe. May be making for a big family dinner with in-laws.
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad you liked it! You shouldn’t have to change anything if you are doubling the recipe. It should come out the same either way, hope this helps!
Brett S says
This was absolutely yummy! East prep…easy cleanup and best of all tasted great! It made way more than I thought it would but that’s ok by me…
Favorite Family Recipes says
Hi Brett- thank you for taking the time to come back and comment! Leftovers of this gumbo are never a bad thing 😉 It re-heats up great!
April says
What if I have a box of instant rough for gumbo , it’s in a can like Tony’s is
Favorite Family Recipes says
I haven’t heard of that before – let me know how it turns out if you try it!
Pat Menville says
We made this about 6 weeks ago and it was a huge success. My husband is Cajun and his family tradition is chicken ONLY in the gumbo, no sausage, no shrimp, but this was a winner for sure. And who knew butter and flour would make a roux so quickly? I’ve spent too many hours of my life stirring oil and flour on the stovetop but this recipe was spot on for the flavor. Because we don’t like heat, we swapped out the andouille sausage for a garlic pecan-smoked pork sausage. The only change we’ll make next time is to cook the frozen okra for a shorter period because we like ours a little firm. This recipe made 8 generous servings and freezes well which makes it good for the two of us-cook a little rice, grab the file power and we’re good to go.
Favorite Family Recipes says
I am so glad you guys enjoyed it! Thanks for the 5-star rating!!
Ryan says
Is the chicken and sausage both raw when added.
Favorite Family Recipes says
Yep!
Lisa says
Has anyone tried canned okra? No fresh okra in MN is the winter! 🙁
I just dont want it to be slimy!
Ash says
Can I use cooked chicken but raw sausage and shrimp? I have some leftover I’d like to get rid of
Favorite Family Recipes says
Yes, absolutely! You can also use rotisserie chicken and just add it when you add the shrimp. Hope this helps!
Debbie says
I have never eaten gumbo let alone make it myself! This was amazing!! And so easy to make! We doubled the garlic to six cloves, used 4 bay leaves and used 3 tsp of creole seasoning for some added spice. Will definitely make again!!
Favorite Family Recipes says
We are so glad you love this recipe as much as we do!! Thank you so much for the 5-star rating!
Terry Mckeen says
This was a great recipe with easy to follow instructions. I used turkey sausage and chicken wings. I also added extra Creole spice for more flavor. It was wonderful! Thank you for this recipe, I will use it again!
Favorite Family Recipes says
Hi Terry- You are very very welcome! So glad that you liked it. I have never heard of Gumbo with chicken wings before– did you just put the wings in whole?
Beth says
Just made this for dinner and wow!! It’s so good!!
I made several changes based on what I had – used smoked East Texas Hot Link sausage, 1 large chicken breast, 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup flour, and omitted okra and shrimp. Absolutely loved this and was happy to make that roux in only 5 min instead of the hour+ I saw on other recipes!
Favorite Family Recipes says
That sounds delicious! I haven’t tried East Texas Hot Link sausage before but now I feel that I must. Yum!
Marla D Carr says
My 3 adult sons all agree that this recipe is “sick”. The whole family loves it and I finally found a gumbo recipe that is so easy to make that I plan to use it regularly. All the boys are great cooks too and now have the recipe to cook for their wives. I made it exactly to the recipe except used the extra-hot Rotel for a bit more punch. Everyone says that a good roux is hard to make but I found it super easy with this method. Oh, I do like it a tiny bit thicker so not having file I used about 2 Tbs of corn starch to thicken it up. Pure preference and not necessary at all. Ingredients were all easily obtainable at the grocery store, including the Tony’s seasoning.
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad you and your family enjoyed this recipe! We love hearing when families gather together to enjoy good food 🙂 Thanks so much for leaving such a nice comment!
Rickie olivier says
From south Louisiana.. there are NO tomatoes in gumbo!!!
The roux& water need to be boiled slowly for at least 3 hours.
Now you have an acceptable dish.
MichelleA says
Since it’s not your recipe, I find it absurd you have the gall to say “now you have an acceptable dish”. The entire point of the Instant Pot is to reduce cook time drastically. Perhaps try it and don’t be such a jerk on other people’s blogs.
Sandra says
Have made this twice now…first go round was a bit too spicey for us wimpy non Cajuns ( but we still ate every bit with some sort of fire killer like bread or crackers LOL) substituted the andouillie sausage with smoked garlic sausage and just garlic diced tomatoes instead of the fire roasted..but still used Tonys liberally..Used all 3 meats..and frozen okra added at the end. Not sure my roux got dark enough….didn’t have real butter just smart balance… But it still came out great!! My grown kids liked it since it is keto friendly without any rice..This one is a keeper…Thanks
Favorite Family Recipes says
LOL “Fire Killer” haha love that. So glad that this was a hit for your family! Thanks for sharing how you made it a success!
Sandra Heaton says
I would keep my PC just for this recipe alone!! The only changes I make are to use file powder instead of okra, though next time I will probably use both. I also substitute a pound of crab meat for the shrimp. This is an amazing dish and we make it quite often now! Everyone who tries it asks for the recipe! Thank you Thank you
Favorite Family Recipes says
Wow, what a huge compliment, thank you! Great idea to use file powder.. and crab meat- YUM! Thanks for the suggestions!
Anita says
What is file powder?
Favorite Family Recipes says
It is a fine powder mostly used in gumbo or other “stew”-type dishes. It is used as a thickener as well as a flavor enhancer. It gives the gumbo a more earthy taste. Hope this helps!
Kayla says
I used this recipe to teach my mom how to use her instant pot I got her for Christmas. She picked the recipe and everyone absolutely loved it. I will be making it again tomorrow for my husband who has been extremely excited.
Favorite Family Recipes says
So glad you and your mom enjoyed this gumbo! Thank you for coming back to leave such a nice comment 🙂
Kimi VanAntwerp says
I have made this recipe twice now and love it. Although, for some reason, liquid spews out through the sealing cap during venting making a mess. I’m wondering if my sausage has too much fat content because the mess is pretty oily. The second time I skipped the butter and only used olive oil thinking that would help.??? May just do it on the stove top next time.
Favorite Family Recipes says
This is probably because your IP is too full– you may want to reduce the amount of liquid in the recipe (you can add it later if you need to). There should be lines in your IP, including a “Max Fill” line. I can usually get away with filling it a little more than the max-fill line but I have noticed if I fill it too full, I will have the same problem. Another thing you can do to reduce this is to set the pressure for 5-10 minutes less and then let it natural release for 10-20 minutes or so. Hope this helps!
MichelleA says
This was my first time making gumbo, and it was fantastic. I did not have a red pepper, so used two green ones instead and left out celery because I didn’t have any on hand. Otherwise followed everything to a T. I did use canola oil instead of olive, and when making the roux added a bit more oil to the butter/flour mix. I wasn’t sure it got dark enough, but everything tasted delicious. Served over brown rice with a side of cornbread, and I can’t wait to make it again!
Sandy Fritz says
Ok, I must admit this southern gal was skeptical about making gumbo in my Instant Pot but decided to give it a try. Aside from adding a bit of oil to the butter to help the roux not burn, I followed the recipe to a T and it was delicious. Thanks so much for sharing a fabulous recipe!
—
“In a world where you can be anything…
be kind, or at least do no harm.” ♥
Erica says
Hi Sandy- What a compliment coming from a true Southern girl! Thank you so much!
deb says
I’m anxious to try this recipe! I’ve been looking for a good gumbo recipe and this sounds like just the one. Thanks for sharing.
Tammy Leahy says
I’m excited to try this tomorrow! One silly question…after releasing and it’s time to add the okra for 5 min and then the shrimp for another 5 min., is this with or without everything else in the pot? Thanks!
Erica Walker says
It’s WITH everything in the pot. Hope this helps!
Tiffany S. says
I made this for my family (my husband and extremely picky 2 boys – 13 & 8) last week and they all loved it so much that we’re making it again tonight. Thank you so much for such a wonderful recipe!
Erica Walker says
Hi Tiffany- So glad you liked this recipe! It is always a big WIN when we can win over the picky eaters! Thanks for the 5-stars!
Ann says
Wow. I made this tonight and my husband gave it a ten! He is the type that never gives a ten. He is a nine point something kind of person even on other amazing dishes. After ten years, I finally got a 10! Thank you for this incredible recipe.
Erica Walker says
Wow!!! I can’t think of a better compliment than this. Thank you so much for coming back and telling us! It is ALWAYS a win when we can win over husbands/kids. Thanks for the 5-stars!
Katie Vineyard says
Flavorful and easy to make. My husband liked it too.
Angel C. says
Thank you! First time to make a gumbo from scratch. Only my 4th IP recipe. My husband and I couldn’t stop raving about how good this was! And I love how easy it was!! I added a few extra spices on my own but this recipe stands alone as great on its own.
Karen Boggess says
Excellent, I didn’t change a thing.
Jack says
My first time making gumbo. Very yummy!! I would be careful with the shrimp. I wished I had pretty cooked the shrimp. And used crawfish. But definitely will be using this recipe again!!