The Best Instant Pot Gumbo with Chicken and Sausage

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Gumbo is a classic “made with love” kind of meal, and I’ve figured out how to make it even easier and faster with the Instant Pot! I will walk you through every button to push, when to add each ingredient, when to stir, and how long to cook it. Follow this recipe and you will have a crowd-favorite gumbo on your hands that people will beg you to make again and again.

01 Why You Will Love this Instant Pot Chicken Sausage Gumbo

02 Ingredients for Gumbo in the Instant Pot

03 How to Cook Gumbo in the Instant Pot

04 Instant Pot Gumbo Tips & Tricks

05 How to Serve Instant Pot Gumbo

06 How to Store and Reheat

07 Instant Pot Gumbo FAQs

Top down view of three bowls of gumbo in little orange serving pots with small handles. They are on a pink colored table with a cutting board with lemons and fresh herbs. There is also a pot of gumbo in the background.

Why You Will Love this Instant Pot Chicken Sausage Gumbo

I think you’re going to love this Instant Pot Chicken and Sausage Gumbo because the flavors are ON POINT. It’s got just the right spice, warmth, butter (oh yeah), brine, protein, and veggie. I like to finish mine off with a splash of fresh lemon juice to help bring everything up one more notch just before serving. I just know you are going to LOVE THIS!

I also know that the cook in your home with love this recipe because it couldn’t be any easier. The Instant Pot does all the work for you, and we walk you through every single button to push, when to stir, and how long to cook it.

Ingredients for Gumbo in the Instant Pot

Instant pot gumbo ingredients on a rectangle wooden cutting board on a grey and white marble surface.

1 cup of butter, divided
2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2, 12-ounce packages of andouille sausage, thinly sliced
1 large yellow onion, diced
5 stalks of celery, diced
2 green bell peppers, diced
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon of fine sea salt
1 cup of gluten-free or all-purpose flour
2 quarts of chicken broth, 8 cups
2 teaspoons of Cajun spice blend
1 teaspoon of dried thyme leaves
½ teaspoon of ground black pepper
2 dried bay leaves
1 pound of okra, tops removed and cut into coins
⅓ cup of fresh chopped parsley
¼ cup of lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
White rice, for serving

Ingredient Modifications and Variations

Make it dairy-free – for a dairy-free Instant Pot gumbo, simply swap the regular butter for either avocado oil or your favorite non-dairy butter.
Make it gluten-free – this gumbo is incredibly easy to make gluten-free! Simply use gluten-free all-purpose flour in place of regular all-purpose flour. THIS is our very favorite.
Use frozen okra – no fresh okra? No problem. Use frozen okra in place of fresh for a super convenient swap!
Serve it with another grain – although white rice is the classic gumbo accompaniment, feel free to serve your gumbo atop brown rice or quinoa if it’s what you have on hand.

How to Cook Gumbo in the Instant Pot

Two tabs of butter melting in the bottom of an instant pot.

The beginning of a roux being whisked together in an instant pot.

Instant pot filled with broth, meat, and vegetables.

Raw chicken in an instant pot on saute mode.

Peanut butter colored roux in an instant pot.

Hands using two forks to shred chicken in a glass bowl.

Slices of sausage being added to an instant pot.

Hand holding a white bowl with frozen okra in it and pouring it into the instant pot.

Sear the chicken – set your Instant Pot to saute mode, then add 2 tablespoons of butter to the Instant Pot once heated. Sear the chicken on both sides until browned, working in batches if necessary, then remove from the pot.
Saute the sausage – add the sliced sausage to the Instant Pot and saute until browned on both sides, approximately 3-5 minutes. Remove the sausage from the pot.
Make the roux – add the remaining butter to the pot. Once warmed through (about 1 minute), add the flour and whisk the two together to combine. Continue to stir the mixture for about 12-15 minutes, until the roux achieves a peanut butter color and nutty fragrance, then turn off the Instant Pot.
Add the rest of the gumbo ingredients – carefully pour the chicken broth into the roux, whisking continually to ensure that there are no lumps. Then add the chicken, sausage, vegetables (except for the okra), spices, and bay leaves.
Cook – cook the gumbo on high pressure for 15 minutes. Once the time is up, quick release the pressure.
Shred the chicken – remove the chicken from the gumbo and shred it with two forks, then return it to the pot.
Add the okra – turn the Instant Pot to saute mode, and add the okra to the pot. Cook for an additional 15 minutes, until the okra is softened.
Stir in the parsley and lemon juice, then serve and enjoy – stir in the parsley and lemon juice, then taste for seasoning and add additional salt or Cajun seasoning as desired. Serve alongside rice and enjoy!

Instant Pot Gumbo Tips & Tricks

Don’t burn the roux – roux can be a little bit finicky (nothing that you can’t handle, though!), so be sure to stir the flour and butter mixture constantly to keep it from burning!
Scrape the bottom – make sure you use a wooden spoon or scraper to really stir the bottom of the instant pot before pressurizing to finish cooking. That way you can get all of the extra flavor from searing your meat and preparing the roux. It also helps avoid getting a burn notice on the instant pot.

Hand scooping a serving of gumbo into a bowl with white rice.

How to Serve Instant Pot Gumbo

Serve your Instant Pot gumbo alongside (or on top of) white or brown rice.

How to Store and Reheat

Store your leftover gumbo in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Stored this way, it’ll last for up to a week. To reheat, simply put the gumbo in a pot on the stove (or back in the Instant Pot on “saute” mode) until warmed through. Alternatively, you can pop the gumbo in the microwave to heat for 1.5-2 minutes.

Can I freeze gumbo?

You can absolutely freeze gumbo! To do this, let it cool completely, then pour it into a freezer-safe container, and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Set the frozen container of gumbo in the refrigerator to thaw the night before you’re ready to enjoy the gumbo. Once thawed, pop it into a pot on the stove (or back into the Instant Pot on “saute” mode) until warmed through.

Small, orange bowl with tiny handles filled with gumbo. The bowl is plated on a pink surface. There is a lemon wedge that has been squeezed and a small wooden bowl of salt next to it.

Instant Pot Gumbo FAQs

Q When do you add flour to gumbo?

Once your chicken and sausage are seared and removed from the pot, you’ll add in the rest of the butter, and then (once the butter is totally melted) your flour. The butter and flour combine to make the roux!

Q Why is my gumbo slimy?

Your gumbo may turn out slimy if you add the okra too early – if it goes into the pot too early, it’ll break down, causing the gumbo to turn slimy and NOT do its job of thickening the soup.

Q Can you substitute okra?

Okra acts as a natural thickener in gumbo, so while you can substitute it for another veggie (green beans, asparagus, and eggplant would all be yummy), do know that your end product may not be quite as thick as it would be with the addition of okra!

Q What is the difference between gumbo and jambalaya?

With Cajun and Creole roots, both dishes include similar flavors and ingredients, so the main difference really comes down to the rice component – gumbo is a stew-like meal served over rice, while jambalaya incorporates the rice in the dish itself, making it a less soup-y, one-pot dish.