Gumbo

[Lucille]

Sure I will continue to post...

Okra is like jewelry to a gumbo.

So is sausage

So are oysters.

Period.

But then there is okra gumbo, that's a whole different deal.

Gumbo changes all along Hwy 90 from Lafayette to New Orleans.

East and west of Lafayette too.

This is my first time in a Lousiana cooking forum, and outside of that type of forum of cooking it gets a little exhausting' trying to explain what is really cajun cooking.

[tryska]

thanks fifi - i'm all about one pot cooking myself. i might give it a go this weekend.

[johnjohn]

Can Gumbo be frozen?

johnjohn

[fifi]

Absolutely. When I make gumbo of whatever type, I always make a double batch so I will have plenty for the freezer. It is a bit of a PITA (but a fun PITA ) to make so I certainly want plenty of leftovers.

One of my tactics for freezing gumbo, stew, soup and such is to fill whatever size Zip Lock freezer bags you find convenient. I don't typically do any larger that 1 quart size. Then, with a little fiddling, you can squeeze just about all of the air out as you seal them. I flatten them out on a baking sheet to freeze. They stack neatly in a freezer basket if you have one. They also defrost quickly in a bowl of hot water so you can reheat it quickly and don't have to do additional "cooking" to get it to serving temperature. This is especially important if you are dealing with seafood. I really don't like what the microwave does to anything containing meat and I wouldn't go near one for seafood.

[fifi]

*bump*

We are having a heck of a gumbo cook off over in the Cooking Forum. Then something came up (actually hatched out of my brain unexpectedly) starting here. In all of my years of cooking and eating gumbo, I don't think I have ever run into, and certainly never made, anything like a "summer vegetable" gumbo. (I am not counting gumbo d'zherbs as I think of that as a whole different dish that just happens to use the word "gumbo.") I thought I would throw the idea out here to you local experts. What the heck. I can take a few brick bats.

[Mayhaw Man]

I am going to be forced to drag up one of the fifty or so chili threads and start talking about "BEAN CHILI- ALL BEANS< ALL THE TIME" if you keep up this stuff. You are talking about vegetable soup with flour in it, sounds like to me. Not a bad thing, but gumbo??? And I suppose, this being hot summertime and all, that you would need to use Okra in it if you are keeping it real. Okra for you Fifi? It's delicious. Nutricious. The perfect green food.

[My Confusing Horoscope]

Summer vegetable gumbo? I would try it. What do you mean by summer vegetables? Do a lot of you fellow people from Louisiana and Texas grow zucchini? I am not sure I can even spell it. I knew of squash and liked it growing up but not like up in Maryland where everyone seems to grow it.

What's in a summer garden down there these days? I gardened with Daddy growing up and it was a lot of okra, butter beans, canteloupe, black eye peas, tomatoes and cucumbers, hot peppers. I wouldn't put some of those in a gumbo but okra and tomatoes and hot peppers. How hot do you make your gumbo? I use my garden grown tabasco and cayenne peppers these days (and they freeze well) but not jalapenos for some reason.

Please elaborate!

Edited February 17, 2005 by My Confusing Horoscope (log)

[fifi]

Sheesh. You guys are asking real questions. I think the zucchini is what did it. We grow a lot of squash, corn, peas, eggplant and tomatoes. And yes . . . some grow okra.

Brooks, what is a gumbo but a soup with roux? Think about it. But it is that roux that makes a world of difference. It elevates gumbo to an etherial plane. Well, that and the trinity. So . . . Let's say you do up a roux, dump in the trinity, add maybe a rich chicken stock. Cook it down for a while so the trinity blends in. With that base, you add in chunks of vegetables. At this point, I am inclined to think of tomato, onion, celery, pepper maybe, still thinking about eggplant, fresh cut corn may not hurt. Hell, it might even be good. I am inclined to slip some sausage in there, though.

[bavila]

You guys...oops, I mean Y'ALL... are a hoot. Can someone provide a link to the Corporate Food thread? I love EGullet, but it's still a bit tedious to search though.

As for gumbo talk, I appreciate all shades of roux, though lean toward medium-dark for my own.

Here's my pet peeve gumbo ingredient -- tomatoes. I know, this is a creole thing, and I have seen it in restaurants in NO, BUT! As a Cajun (by blood, not just geography) who grew up in Lafayette, I have to say that NO home cooks I knew ever put tomatoes in their gumbo.

So now that I live in Yankeeland (you know, north of Alexandria, Louisiana), whenever I see "gumbo" on the menu somewhere, I ask what color it is -- brown, or red. The answer is almost invariably "red" giving away the toms. I then tell the waiter or chef or whoever will listen why I think the tomatoes don't belong there.

All that soap box blathering aside, I have tasted "gumbos" with tomatoes and found them tasty concoctions, but I just won't call them "gumbo". The worst, though, was when the cafeteria at my former workplace served "gumbo" served on a plate with a fork!?!

[My Confusing Horoscope]

The worst, though, was when the cafeteria at my former workplace served "gumbo" served on a plate with a fork!?!

One time at a Maryland restaurant I won't name I ordered jambalaya and the waiter asked me if I wanted rice with that.

[NYC Mike]

I searched but could not find the "Gumbo" thread. If one does exist please roll me into it.

Brooks, we made our first gumbo this weekend using your recipe from your blog. It was amazing!! Unfortunatly we didn't have camera batteries thanks to 3 battery thieving kids but we will make again for sure!

Thanks for sharing the method and recipe, it really made something intimidating easy and we had fantastic results.

-Mike

[Kerry Beal]

Is this the one you are looking for?

[Mayhaw Man]

I'm glad that it turned out well. I love making gumbo. It's a very satisfying thing to do.

I made a duck and smoked sausage gumbo to augment some crawfish that I boiled on Sunday afternoon. It must have been good. I'm pretty sure that's the case as I made a ton and the only thing left in the bottom of the pot was the bottom of the pot. Several of my guests were chefs (a couple of Beard Awards between them) and both of them asked what the deal was with the flavor. The answer was pretty simple-all duck fat-no oil at all. It was pretty good if I do say so myself.

[Varmint]

If there is a heaven, everything will be cooked in duck fat.

[NYC Mike]

That sounds amazing! I think we will have to try that one. I've been eyeing a duck and sausage recipt in John Folse's book.

I am glad we listened re: making a lot to have leftovers. I got back from a 3 day road trip late last night to some gumbo leftovers. It was amazing after a few days rest!

-Mike

[BrooksNYC]

Most gumbo recipes start with a roux made with flour and "vegetable oil". Given that the kind of vegetable oil is never specified, is it safe to assume that any oil (corn, peanut, canola, safflower, etc.) will do?

Am guessing olive oil won't work, as it has too low a burning point. This will be my first whack at gumbo, so any input would be appreciated.

Thanks. . .

[xxchef]

Peanut oil works great.

[Pierogi]

Most olive oils will also be too strongly flavored. You want a neutral oil. I usually use peanut oil, since it has a high smoke point, and enhances the "toasty" taste of the roux, or corn oil. I guess you could use canola, but I've had problems with the "fishy odor syndrome" from it, so I avoid it for high heat applications, which roux certainly qualifies for.

[Alex]

Here's a great chart of smoke points.

I've been using grapeseed oil, but as Pierogi mentioned, refined peanut oil has an even higher smoke point.

[KennethT]

Grapeseed oil is good, but pretty expensive. As others have said, I like peanut oil for roux - it adds a nice nuttiness, as well as being stable at temps high enough to get a nice dark roux.

[BrooksNYC]

Thanks so much, everyone.

Will definitely try grapeseed oil some day when I'm not counting every sad penny. For now, peanut it is.

Alex, thanks for the link to the smoke point chart. There are some interesting follow-up comments as well.

Much obliged to all!

Edited May 24, 2011 by BrooksNYC (log)

[HungryC]

Most often, I use peanut oil, as I keep it on hand for frying. But olive oil will work just fine, as long as you're not trying to make an ultra-dark roux. Never had it burn on me for a "peanut-butter" colored roux, which is the shade I use most often. The best, though, is bacon grease: nutty, smoky, and packed with flavor. It is esp good when making a poultry gumbo to bump up the richness. Bonus: it's the free byproduct of eating bacon. Reuse/recycle....

[Twyst]

From my experience it doesn't really matter. I don't really care for using olive oil but any other source of fat is fair game. I use duck fat for my duck and oyster gumbo, peanut oil for chicken and sausage and either peanut oil or butter for seafood gumbo.

Edited May 24, 2011 by Twyst (log)

[BrooksNYC]

Great stuff, all. Thanks.

While we're on the subject, Poppy Tooker has an interesting tip for making dark roux that I never see in a gumbo recipes. She makes a peanut-butter-colored roux and adds the trinity in stages, beginning with onions only. As the onions caramelize, the roux continues to darken. Only after. the roux reaches the desired shade of darkness does she add the celery and green pepper.

She argues that adding the trinity in one swell foop releases too much liquid for the onions to caramelize, and that caramelized onions add depth of flavor.

.

[HungryC]

Great stuff, all. Thanks.

While we're on the subject, Poppy Tooker has an interesting tip for making dark roux that I never see in a gumbo recipes. She makes a peanut-butter-colored roux and adds the trinity in stages, beginning with onions only. As the onions caramelize, the roux continues to darken. Only after. the roux reaches the desired shade of darkness does she add the celery and green pepper.

She argues that adding the trinity in one swell foop releases too much liquid for the onions to caramelize, and that caramelized onions add depth of flavor.

.

Yes, what Poppy says is SOP in Acadiana. You add the onions first to slow down the roux's cooking, wait for the onions to brown, (and I mean brown, not just soften), then add the bell pepper & celery. These instructions are found in beaucoup community cookbook gumbo recipes, so you know it's a fairly widespread practice.