Make Gumbo

Make gumbo like the real Cajuns do! Gumbo, which originated in southern Louisiana, can be defined as a soup of meat and/or shellfish and rice. It is always seasoned with garlic, onions, and ground cayenne pepper. Its name, "Gumbo" is an African word for "okra", and this is the traditional thickener used.

Ingredients

  • A total of 1 pound of two or more different varieties of meat or seafood: game (squirrel, rabbit, deer, raccoon, opossum, nutria), poultry (turkey, duck, chicken, quail, dove), smoked meat (sausages, tasso, or andouille), and shellfish (crawfish, shrimp, crabs, oysters, or scallops).
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 large onion
  • 1 1/2 cups okra
  • 2 ribs celery
  • 1 large bell pepper
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 2 quarts chicken stock
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups rice

Steps

Preparing the Ingredients

  1. De-slime the okra. Fresh okra has a gooey substance inside that many find unappealing. The method of removing this substance is called "de-sliming." Wash the okra and place it in a bowl with a quart of water and a cup of vinegar. Allow the mixture to soak for an hour. When an hour has passed, drain the okra, rinse it in fresh water, and pat dry with paper towels. Chop the de-slimed okra into bite-sized pieces and reserve in a container.
  2. Mince the garlic and dice the vegetables. Start by peeling and mincing the garlic cloves. Peel and dice a large onion, a few ribs of celery and a large bell pepper - the Cajun "holy trinity" - and reserve in a separate container. If you like more of one ingredient than another, feel free to add it - throwing in an extra onion, celery rib, or pepper won't change the rich flavor of gumbo.
  3. Chop the meat. Slice any sausage, andouille or tasso you're using into bite-sized slices, and store them in a container. Cut the whole game or poultry you have chosen to use into bite-sized pieces. Rinse the pieces, pat them dry with a paper towel, and reserve in a separate container. Refrigerate the meat until you're ready to compile the gumbo.
  4. Shell or shuck the seafood. Discard the shells and reserve the seafood in a sealed container. Refrigerate it until you're ready to compile the gumbo.

Making the Base

  1. Make a roux. Heat the butter in a stockpot large enough to hold the gumbo. Turn the burner to medium high and allow the butter to melt completely. Add the flour and use a whisk to stir it into the butter. Keep stirring as the mixture cooks and turns from gold to brown.
    • Don't overcook the roux, or it will change the flavor of the gumbo. Turn down the heat if it looks like it's cooking too quickly.
    • If the roux overcooks, it's best to start over with a new batch of butter and flour.
  2. Add the stock. As soon as the roux looks ready, ladle the stock to keep the roux from burning. Stir the mixture until the stock heats and begins to simmer.
  3. Add the vegetables. Stir in the onion, celery, and bell pepper mixture. Sprinkle in the chopped okra and garlic. Bring the stock to a boil.
  4. Brown the meat. While the stock is coming to a boil, place a skillet on a burner and turn the heat to medium high. Pour some oil on the skillet and let it heat up. Lay the bite-sized chunks of raw meat on the skillet and let them brown on one side for a minute. Use tongs to turn the meat over and brown it on the other side.
    • Work in batches if necessary, since crowding the pan with meat will prevent liquid evaporation and prevent proper browning.
    • It's not necessary to completely cook the meat, since it will finish in the gumbo pot.
  5. Add the meats and fish to the pot. Use tongs to transfer the browned meat to the pot. Add the smoked meats as well. Use a large wooden spoon to stir the mixture, and bring it back to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer and let it cook for one hour.

Seasoning and Finishing the Gumbo

  1. Add the seasonings. Measure in the cayenne, black pepper, salt, and any other seasonings you wish to incorporate. Stir them into the gumbo. Taste the gumbo and decide whether to add more seasonings. Simmer the gumbo for another hour to give the flavors time to meld.
  2. Cook the rice. In a separate pot or in a rice cooker, cook the rice. When it's finished cooking, use two forks to fluff it up.
  3. Stir in the seafood. When the gumbo is almost finished cooking, stir in the shellfish and let it cook for another 10 minutes. This keeps the shellfish tender.
  4. Serve the gumbo. Spoon the rice into bowls. Ladle the gumbo over the rice and serve it hot. Many Cajuns enjoy gumbo with Louisiana hot sauce on the side.



Tips

  • It is not necessary to de-bone meat for gumbo. Bones add flavor.
  • Making one's own gumbo, and doing so well, is a labor of love. It takes a lot of time to make, and many years to perfect what will become your own personal recipe. Gumbo, like brisket, biscuits, and perfect apple pie, is something the cook needs be in the long haul for.
  • Never serve slimy okra gumbo. If you do, first call it okra soup or something else and distance yourself from all things Cajun.
  • Tasso is a kind of heavily seasoned preserved smoked meat product usually made with pork shoulder available in most meat markets in and around SW Louisiana.
  • If using shrimp, crawfish or crabs, save the shells/heads and use them to make a great stock. Simply bring the shells to a high boil in water then simmer the shell pieces and shrimp or crawfish heads for around an hour. Strain the shells out of the stock and now you have a great start to your gumbo.
  • It's not "real Cajun" gumbo if you don't eat rice with the gumbo.
  • "Gumbo File" is sassafras leaves dried and ground to a fine powder and is a common gumbo thickener and spice, particularly in and around SW Louisiana. It is wise to use sparingly initially, until you decide how much you like it; it does have a distinctive flavor. Sassafras root can be dug up and used to make a delicious herbal tea, but is not used for cooking.
  • Boil a ham bone, this makes a great stock for gumbo.

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Sources and Citations

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