"You can use the pork ribs as a substitute for neck bones if the supermarket doesn't carry them. Brown them and then cook them low and slow in the sauce. Ask the butcher, though, for the neck bones because they are inexpensive and add so much flavor! You can get beef and veal neck bones too. (Peasant food from long ago in poverty stricken Italy.)"

"A very good dish. I made some major changes though, because I didn't have everything on hand. I left out parsley, bay leaf, and file powder because I didn't have them; salt beause there is enough salt in Essence and smoked meat; subsituted yellow onion for green onion; used half kielbasa and half sweet Italian sausage and chicken legs instead of thighs; and added roasted chicken from the night before. Before browning the kielbasa I boiled it to remove some of the salt. For pretty presentation, I put the rice in a ramekin and invert it on the plate, then top with the gumbo. Shrimp also would have made a nice addition to this dish. "

"Awesome, even when modified. I left out swiss chard, corn, parsley and parmesan since I didn't have them on hand. Cumin seeds substituted fine for ground cumin. I added onion powder, garlic powder and fresh cracked pepper for flavor, and served the chili over a fine egg noodle."