Seafood Gumbo New Orleans Style
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Gumbo has been called the greatest contribution of Louisiana kitchens to American cuisine. When the first French settlers came to Louisiana, they brought their love for bouillabaisse, a highly seasoned fish stew. Having none of the usual ingredients necessary to make a typical French bouillabaisse, they substituted local ingredients. After about a century, with the Spanish, Africans, and Natives of the region offering their contributions of food, the stew was no longer recognizable as bouillabaisse and became gumbo. What started out as second best became better than the original. The word gumbo is derived from African words for okra (guingombo, tchingombo, and kingombo), a pod-like vegetable introduced by African slaves and often used to thicken the stew. Gumbo is a classic Cajun one pot, communal stew that is especially important around Mardi Gras (the Mardi Gras season officially begins twelve days after Christmas, on January 6, and culminates on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent). There is only one rule that remains constant in making gumbo: First you make a roux. The roux, a flour and oil or butter mixture, which acts as a thickening agent, is the gumbo's base. There are no other hard-and-fast rules for the ingredients used in making gumbo - anything that flies, crawls, creeps, or lies still may end up in the gumbo pot. There are as many recipes for gumbo as there are cooks in Louisiana. The making of gumbo draws out the competitive streak in most Louisianans, and most cooks closely guard their recipes.
In some rural areas of Louisiana, masked and costumed horseback riders participate in what is called the Courir de Mardi Gras, which means "run of Mardi Gras." Routes can be as long as sixty miles, and the riders may visit as many as thirty households. They ride up to a farmhouse along the route to ask permission for the group to come up to the house. When permission is granted, the riders charge toward the house, where they sing, dance, and beg until the owner offers them an ingredient for making their gumbo. Often the owner will throw a live chicken into the air that the riders will chase, like football players trying to recover a fumble.
Today, people come from all over to watch the riders start their Courir de Mardi Gras.
They also are there to greet the riders after the run and to help cook a large gumbo with
the food that was collected. The festivities end promptly at midnight, the beginning of
Lent. |
Seafood Gumbo New Orleans Style
Roux (see recipe below) 1/2 cup chopped celery 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined* 1 jar oysters (check for shells) 2 cloves garlic, chopped fine 1 tablespoon chopped green bell pepper 1 can (10 1/2 ounces ) tomatoes 2 sprigs parsley, chopped 1 bay leaf (remove before serving) 2 teaspoons Cavender's Greek Seasoning** 2 quarts water or fish stock 1 bunch green onion, chopped 1/2 pound crabmeat or 1 dozen crabs*** Salt and pepper Hot cooked long-grain white rice Crackers 1 teaspoon File, optional**** * In New Orleans they sell what are called "gumbo shrimp." They are not the big shrimp that you use in a "stand alone" shrimp dish. They are used more for flavor than texture. I guess you could put some of the shrimp in early for the simmering and some later for the presentation. Some people in New Orleans even boil the shells and heads to get that serious shrimp flavor. I don't care for it myself; it has that "low tide" taste! ** If you can't find Cavender's seasoning, you can substitute another brand of seasoning salt - but Cavender's is the best. *** If using whole crabs, scald live hard-shelled crabs and clean, removing the spongy substance and the "sand bag" on the under part. Break off and crack the claws and cut the body in half. **** Gumbo is also thickened with File (FEE-lay) powder, made from ground dried leaves of the sassafras tree. File powder must be stirred into gumbo after it's removed from the heat because undue cooking makes the powder tough and stringy. Start making the Roux. In a large frying pan:, fry okra in 2 tablespoons shortening approximately 30 to 40 minutes or until it ceases to "rope" (slimy strings connecting the okra); remove from heat and set aside. NOTE: Take your time and don't burn it. It's worth the trouble. In a Gumbo Pot or a large cast-iron Dutch Oven over medium-high heat, melt the butter and fry the onions and celery about 5 minutes or until soft. Add the shrimp, oysters, garlic, and bell pepper; simmer 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, parsley, bay leaf, Cavender's Seasoning, water or fish stock, green onion, fried okra, prepared Roux, and crabmeat or crabs. Salt and pepper to taste. Let gumbo simmer for approximately 30 minutes. Serve with hot rice, crackers, and file on the side. Makes 6 servings.
Roux: In a heavy iron skillet over medium heat, heat shortening until hot; add flour gradually, stirring or whisking to combine. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, about 45 to 60 minutes or until roux is dark brown and has a nutlike odor (it will be very thick and pasty). NOTE: This process takes some time, depending on how high the heat is. The slower, the better, but be ready to remove skillet from heat and stir more rapidly if the roux appears to be burning. Set aside.
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Photo courtesy of
City of St. Martinvill, Louisiana.