Mack's Steak and Seafood Creole Gumbo

[bigwheel]

There is a restaurant down here called "Mack's Steaks and Seafood Grill" (or similar). They make the best Gumbo I ever ate in my life. I got this recipe off of em using some strong arm techniques. Sorry to repoat it do not require a roux...and if you want to use oleo Margarine for the grease ration it works best to chill it overnight and peel off the hard greasy stuff which accumulates on top the next day..otherwise it make you burp grease for two days. Thinking of using peanut oil next time. Now I tweak the heck out of it..using mostly skinless and boneless chicken thighs..smoked sausage and shrimp for the meats. I always put a bunch of deslimed okry in there too. Gumbo without Okry is like bread without butter to me. This is for the small batch minus the tweaks. Use Minor's Brand shrimp base to make the stock. The Farmer Brothers Coffee Company Gumbo File can be hard to find..but it got some stuff in there other than sassafras leaves..I ghuarantee.

bigwheel

Mack's Gumbo (half small version)

1 1/2 T cayenne
1 1/2 T paprika
1 T salt
1/2 T white pepper
1/2 T black pepper
1/2 T thyme
1/2 T oregano
3 bay leaves crumbled
1 1/8 lb margarine
3/8 quarts chopped onions
3/8 quarts chopped celery
3/8 quarts chopped bell pepper
1/2 cup +1 T. Gumbo File (Farmer Bros. Coffee Company brand)
3 T tobasco sauce
1 T minced garlic
3 1/4 cup tomato sauce
1 1/2 lbs. crab meat
3 dozen oysters
2 lbs 51/60 shrimp
1 gallon seafood stock

1. Prepare meats
2. Combine seasonings in bowl
3. In large stock pot melt margarine over med heat and sautee veggies.
4. Turn heat to high and stir in gumbo file, tobasco, garlic and seasoning
mix. Cook 6 mins. stirring constantly.
5. Reduce heat to medium and stir in tomato sauce. Cook 5 mins. stirring
constantly scraping bottom of pan.
6. Add stock and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 45 to 60 mins.
stirring occasionally.
7. Pour into hotel pans and reduce to 140 within 4 hours.
8. Store in covered container.

Service: Warm to 165 for 15 seconds within 4 hours for service.
Method: When ready to serve bring to a rapid boil, lower heat to simmer, and add the seafood. Immediately cover the pot and turn off the heat and let pot stand covered for 6-10 mins. Hold at 140 minimum.

 

[007bond-jb]

No Roux? Then its soup, Not gumbo Sarge!

 

[bigwheel]

Ahhh non mi amigo. As you might notice great pains was expended to inform the populace the recipe posted was a "Creole Gumbo" as opposed to a "Cajun Gumbo." Which had it been labled as a Cajun Gumbo you woulda been correctomundo as concerns the roux admixture in common parlance. Of course as we all know Creole Gumbo's often don't employ a roux...but guess a person could have it with a roux if they wanted. Now if a person so desired they could fault the original recipe for being labled a Gumbo at all since it's original formulation does not contain Okry which is supposed to be the African word for Gumbo which would sorta make it like a peanut butter sandwich without any peanut butter. It shoulda been called a Creole File' Gumbo I suppose. Now since I always put Okry in it anyway just to be on the safe side I think the name is still kosher. Smart thinning Boy!!

bigwheel

 

[007bond-jb]

Ahh my friend Sarge... in Louisiana cooking, we have: cajun, creole, New Orleans & acadian styles. Along with adaptations from french, spanish, german, italian & african. There are many variations of gumbo, more than the hair on my head.

What your recipe describe's a cross between courtbouillion & bouillabaisse,
they may or may not be roux based.

Now a gumbo is allways roux based, at least east of the sabine


I have more than 25 cajun, creole, New Orleans & acadian cookbooks, all recipes for gumbo use a roux. We do have some dishes that are thickend with tomato paste & flour, shrimp creole is one.

 

[bigwheel]

Ok I give Guess they didn't have room for all that court bullion jargon on the menu so they just call it Gumbo. Still the best when compared to any bowl of Gumbo you ever tasted. If a cook could whup up a batch for a Gumbo contest without getting busted by the Roux Poleece for not making a roux..using an instant roux or from the jar model etc. it would be a sure fire winner. Now will you pass judgement on the proposition that "Creole Gumbo" can have tomater products in it whereas "Cajun Gumbo" can't have none? Now this tidbit come from a Real Cajun who inhabited the propa side of the River. Now I never did hear how many books she owned but she was a world class cook on any dish. She was also smart enough to get out of Baton Rouge as soon as possible. Now real Texas folks can put tomaters in anything except chili and not get bad mouthed too heavy.

bigwheel

 

[007bond-jb]

Mators are a primary ingrediant in most all creole recipes. They may or may not be used in cajun stuff, its just a matter of personal taste.
Acadian cuisine is kinda a mix or cross between the 2.
It is a cooking style which reflects their ingenuity, creativity, adaptability and survival.


An interesting artical:

http://www.landrystuff.com/cuisine.html

 

[bigwheel]

Well interesting read there Boy. Now this is the first time I ever heard that Acadians and Cajuns was a different species of critter or had distinct cooking styles. Justeen always say the word Acadian is the root word from which the word Cajun was derived. Can tell it gonna take a trip down there to help all this word play get itself straightend out.

bigwheel

 

[Rag1]

The timing here is great. I just made my best ever gumbo yesterday and read some history on it.
What I read said that cajuns didn't use a roux because the rail lines had not made it west to supply flour. They also didn't have okra. So their gumbo had no roux and used file to thicken.
The N.O. gumbo used roux (had rails bringing flour) and okra, plus tomatoes from the Italian influence.
I don't use tomatoes, but add both okra and file.

 

[bigwheel]

The version of the story I got from over on the Gumbo Pages I think..or maybe some come from Justeen..seemed to voice the opinyawn that okry was used during the growing season..summer I suppose and then when the weather switched over to the winter months and there wasnt any mo fresh okry..the cajuns moved over to the file' powder as a sub for the okry. Thats why most times Gumbo has either file' or okry but not both. Might be some of this stuff depends on the general time frame under consideration. Purty sure since Okry was originally indeginous to Africka there would be mo of it around Norleans since the proportion of Africkan Americkans was higher there than could be found running around out in the swamps most likely. First I heard of the flour shortage story but do sound sorta plausible...cept everybody else seemed to have plenty of it stretching back all the way to when Old Shep was just a pup. Think flour made hardtack/biscuits and such was a main stay in the diet of nearly all the Southern State peckerwoods back during the War of Northern Aggression. Maybe even during the Wars which got fought with Merry Old England. Fact think it was also a common part of the diet of Limey sailors way back in the 1700's. Hard to imagine they wouldn't let the folks in Norleans have any. Must have been some early form of discrimination and political incorrectness. I will forward a copy of this thread over to Prez Osama and maybe to ACORN so to perhaps launch an investigation into this matter. Thanks.

bigwheel

 

[007bond-jb]

Okra & file` togeather in a gumbo will make stringy, never put file` (or rice) in the gumbo pot while or after cooking. File`will again make it stringy when reheated.

Farmers who lived by a mill would have flour regardles of rail service.

I done a gumbo clip with lots of info & will post it in GD area

 

[bigwheel]

Gotcha Boy. Will examine the film when I gets home from the salt mine. For some reason when I'm at work the pics and movies gets twit filtered out of the equation. Thanks.

bigwheel