Cajun Seafood Gumbo

[kitchenelf]

Seafood Gumbo
A true Cajun classic.

Ingredients
1 pound crab meat 1 pint oysters
1 pound raw shrimp 2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp flour 2 onions chopped
1 green pepper chopped 1 cup chopped celery
1/2 tsp garlic salt 1/2 tbsp red pepper
4 bay leaves 1 tbsp file'
1 cup green onion tops 2 quarts water


Directions
Make a dark roux with the flour and oil in a large Dutch oven. Saute the onion, pepper, and celery in roux. Add the water and the seasonings and cook for 1/2 hour. Add shrimp and cook for 10 minutes. Add crabmeat, oysters and green onions, and simmer for 10 more minutes. Serve over rice and add file' if desired

 

[Atomic Jed]

Yum! Kitchen Elf! (May I come over ta ya'll 's house for Dinner? Lol, (I'll wash dishes) (Thnx) (good recipe! ( 232.1 More Five Star Votes to Advance Us to #6!!! Atomic Jed!

 

[Constance]

Mrs. Bordis' Seafood Gumbo

This is the way they do it along Bayou Lafouche!

Ingredients:
1 chicken, boiled, boned and cut up
2 qts broth from chicken
1 cup flour
1 cup oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped peppers
1 lb smoked sausage, sliced
1 lb uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 lb lump crabmeat
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tbl salt
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tswp black pepper
1 tsp theyme
2 tsp file' powder
Louisiana Red Hot Sauce
cooked rice

In a large heavy kettle, combine oil and flour to make a roux. Cook and stir over med/high heat until caramel color. Add chopped vegetables and continue cooking till roux is color of chocolate. Lower heat to medium and stir in broth. Season broth with parsley, salt, black pepper, cayenne, thyme and hot sauce. Add chicken and sausage and simmer until sausage is tender. Taste and adjust seasoning...should have a good "bite" to it, as rice absorbs a lot of seasoning. Add crab meat and shrimp, and continue cooking till shrimp is pink, about 5-10 minutes. To serve, put a big spooonfull of rice in each bowl. Ladle gumbo over rice and sprinkle with a pinch of file powder.

*Note* In that part of the bayous, they didn't use any tomatoes or okra in their gumbo. They also cooked the crab and shrimp in the gumbo with the shells on, and left the bones in the chicken. If you want the flavor from the shells, I suggest you add them to the chicken when you're boiling it. Or...eat it naked in the spa.

Paul Prudhomme's mother says about making roux, "turn off the phone and lock the chilren outside!" Gumbo is an all day affair, if you make it right. I frequently cook the chicken and get the broth all ready the day before.

 

[choclatechef]

African americans almost always use okra in their gumbo!

Gumbo is an african word for okra.

edited to say....cajuns don't usually use okra.

 

[Constance]

okra

Yes, and I like it in there! Note that I said, "In that part of the bayou." Every cook makes their own version, of course, and when I lived in Plaquemine Parish, the ones I tasted didn't have it.

 

[choclatechef]

Yes, and I like it in there! Note that I said, "In that part of the bayou." Every cook makes their own version, of course, and when I lived in Plaquemine Parish, the ones I tasted didn't have it.

ITA.

 

[Alix]

ITA? I can't find that abbreviation anywhere. Could you explain?

 

[choclatechef]

Sorry. It means "I too agree".

 

[cantcook]

Just to add something to what constance said about the shells. I always put loose crabmeat in my seafood gumbo, and shell on gumbo crabs. There's nothing like sucking gumbo juice and crabmeat out of those shells! For the shrimp, no need to leave the shells on, too much mess. Just peel them and keep the heads and shells, then boil them down and use that as your water stock. I wouldn't suggest it with a chicken gumbo, cause your seafood flavor will overpower, but for an all seafood gumbo it makes an excellent stock.

As far as a gumbo with no okra..............by loose definition it wouldn't really be a gumbo. Just a stew or soup. And I don't know any cajuns that don't use okra, at least not on purpose!

 

[Alix]

Thank you. I will file that in the back of my brain for future use.