Gumbo - Recipes, Tips & Discussion

I am a big fan of gumbos, I make them pretty often, and they are kind of a blank canvas for ingredients. Instead of having recipes for this brilliant soup buried in a thread with other soup recipes I am of the opinion that it deserves its own thread.

I made a magical version tonight, one I had been thinking about for a few days. I use Chef paul Pruddhomes recipes as a base, but throw my own twists into the mix.

Tonights version had smoked chicken thighs, double smoked kilbasa, and okra as the main ingredients. Thighs and kilbasa were done on the WSM using Coconut charcoal and maple wood. Smokey, really good.

Roux was done with lard & flour, and pretty quick, a high heat version that reached its color within 10 minutes. Of course the trinity was used(celery, onion, green pepper), as well as diced garlic, and some diced jalapeno's from jens garden(thanks they had some nice heat).

Okra was added for the last 20 minutes as well as the smoked chicken meat. Turned out a really flavorfull version.

One late adder I thought of was a soft boiled egg to top the rice, previous gumbo version i have done had hlalved hardboiled eggs added at the end as done on Chef Pruddhomes versions. A nice texture treat. The yolky softboiled egg was magical. Texture, flavor, just great

basic's:



prepped:



roux ingredients(lard, flour, and a tall boy for while I was stirring):



finished roux:



protein on the smoker:



finished thigh:



smoked chix:



magnificent:





thanks for looking.

That looks really tasty! I used to make gumbo frequently, but not so much in recent years. I did change up ingredients from time to time, but andouille (sometimes referred to as gumbo sausage) was always in the mix. I vacillated on using file. But, I never topped a bowl of gumbo with egg of any form. I'll try it, but it doesn't strike me as either authentic or a good "fit". But to each his (or her) own.

I am a bigger fan of jambalaya, especially now that I found I can cook it in the oven instead of on the stovetop.

little500 wrote:That looks really tasty! But, I never topped a bowl of gumbo with egg of any form. I'll try it, but it doesn't strike me as either authentic or a good "fit". But to each his (or her) own.

thanks,

one of Chef Prudhomme's family recipes calls for it so I went with the hardboiled egg in the past, the softboiled egg worked alot better.

hard boiled egg is very traditional. my neighbor's originally from Rayne, LA, down in cajun country near Lake Charles. She taught me that folks down there add cold potato salad to their bowl of rice and gumbo. I thought it was insane and probably a family tradition, but it's fantastic. Sure enough, I've since met unrelated folks from the area and they tell me everyone does it. Just put a scoop in your bowl right before you eat it. The cold creaminess against the spicy warmth makes for one happy mouth.

btw, pleasure meeting you on Saturday. I'm the old woman in a cowboy hat.

Hi -

A suggestion if it fancies you. Parkerhouse hot sausages are a gumbo match made in heaven, imo. More than likely Ultra Foods will have these frozen, I think. I normally do a reg kielbasa, and parkerhouses for my gumbo. They are not firey hot, but for those who like a lil kick, they seemlessly blend into the gumbo's flavor. You can also tell the difference by sight right away, so those who might not like a spicy snausage bite can avoid them.

thanks seebee,

andoullie is always my first choice, kilbasa works in a pinch, but ill keep a lookout for the brand you mentioned.

Leon's makes an excellent andouille for the commercial market, but I've never seen it retail. Sometimes they have it at restaurant depot. I lu-u-u-u-v Parkerhouse hot links they are absolutely the best, and will have to try it in gumbo sometime.

seebee wrote:Parkerhouse hot sausages are a gumbo match made in heaven, imo. More than likely Ultra Foods will have these frozen, I think.

Park Packing had Parkerhouse smoked sausage when I was there a few weeks ago. Not sure if they carry the hot.

Park Packing



Park Packing Co
4107 South Ashland Avenue
Chicago, IL 60609
773-254-0100

dk wrote:hard boiled egg is very traditional....

A little online research proves this to be true, although Jim's soft-boiled version is not mentioned in any of the resources I consulted.

dk wrote:hard boiled egg is very traditional. my neighbor's originally from Rayne, LA, down in cajun country near Lake Charles. She taught me that folks down there add cold potato salad to their bowl of rice and gumbo. I thought it was insane and probably a family tradition, but it's fantastic. Sure enough, I've since met unrelated folks from the area and they tell me everyone does it. Just put a scoop in your bowl right before you eat it. The cold creaminess against the spicy warmth makes for one happy mouth.

btw, pleasure meeting you on Saturday. I'm the old woman in a cowboy hat.

it was great meeting you as well.

I have also read of the potato salad in the gumbo.

The soft boiled egg was just something I thought of after a bowl of noodles I had @ Graze in Madison, WI. that had a soft poached egg in it. They could have put a couple more poached eggs in there as far as I am concerened. It was a revelation and reinforced that egg yolk goes pretty much with everything.

Great topic idea, Jim.

Just curious about what Prudhomme book or books you are looking to for recipes. I only have one of his, Seasoned America. It has one gumbo recipe, which he credits to his mother, and it calls for chicken, shrimp, and sausage (although he says in the intro paragraph that she generally used chicken and andouille, among other things, but "never shrimp, since we couldn't get any, and she rarely made a gumbo with both meat and seafood, as we've done here.")

My own go-to for all Louisiana dishes is the book River Road Recipes, which has recipes for basic gumbo filé, chicken okra gumbo, okra gumbo, shrimp gumbo, and seafood gumbo (oysters, crab, crawfish in place of shrimp). If you're interested in these recipes I can post them or send them to you.

I gather from reading RRR that the thickener can be okra, cooked with the gumbo, or filé powder, added after the gumbo is removed from the heat, but not both. Sweet Baboo and I both like okra, but I also keep filé powder on hand for when I don't have okra.

My issue with using shrimp in gumbo is the same as with using it in jambalaya: I like to put in all three, chicken, andouille, and shrimp, but I like to make big batches too, and shrimp toughens on reheating (and so does the sausage, sometimes). My sister has suggested to me for both gumbo and jambalaya that I make the big batches for freezing with the chicken only, and add the andouille and shrimp fresh for that first night's dinner or for when reheating a frozen batch.

Wish I had the option for smoked chicken and smoked andouille like you do. Mmmmm.

Hi ya Jim!

Ooowee, GUMBO!

I do love gumbo. I've had many a bowls and all are always quite good, while no two bowls of scratch made gumbo are ever the same. I love all sorts of different types of gumbo, although I'm not opposed to mixing and matching either. Gumbo z'herbes or a mix and match of chicken , shrimp, crawfish, andouille, etc., etc.

I do prefer a cajun gumbo over a creole...but I'd never turn either down. When it comes to sausage anything can and will do...but if I can get my hands on some of Jacob's andouille I will. It really has a unique flavor and the wonderful tasso ham type aundouille. Once in a while I'll go to the Polish store and pick up some raw polish sausage and smoke it myself with pretty good results. But Jacob's gets the flavors so right.

When it comes to all things Louisiana, I turn to my John Folse cookbooks. He's not only an accomplished Cajun/Creole Chef...but also a historian of everything that made up what's now Louisiana. He's got an early Louisiana pecan pie that's to die for. The recipe calls for fig preserves, but in season I use fresh figs. The pie has a nice balance and not overly sweet. His cookbooks read like a combination recipe book/history lesson.

When it comes to a lot of sausages (many andouille included) I've been being disappointed. The trend that I've noticed is that alot of "in-house" sausages are a double fine grind with tons of superground spices blended into the meat. A sausage is made using the grind size, meat/fat blend and blend of spices///preferably whole spices when possible. Personally, I think we're losing the art of good sausages...but that's another topic.


I've actually been looking for someplace to order a sassafras tree from, that way I can grind up my own Filé powder for gumbo.


go go gumbo!
dan

Katie wrote:

My issue with using shrimp in gumbo is the same as with using it in jambalaya: I like to put in all three, chicken, andouille, and shrimp, but I like to make big batches too, and shrimp toughens on reheating (and so does the sausage, sometimes). My sister has suggested to me for both gumbo and jambalaya that I make the big batches for freezing with the chicken only, and add the andouille and shrimp fresh for that first night's dinner or for when reheating a frozen batch.

Wish I had the option for smoked chicken and smoked andouille like you do. Mmmmm.

Hi Katie,

Adding the fresh shrimp just before serving is a good idea. So is NOT freezing them. But another thing you can do is peel the shrimp when you start your gumbo and add the shells to the stock for some extra flavor, just don't forget to take them out.

On the subject of shrimp shells...always save them and freeze for another date (just like chicken bones)

dan

great feedback gonefishin & Katie,

I also add shrimp at the last part of the cook like gonefishin, and add the shells for flavor, really makes for a great gumbo broth.

Sausage is a tough one, special trips are needed either to Rheams or other places to get the right stuff.

the Chef Prudhomme cookbook I use for reference is "The Prudhomme Family Cookbook: Old-Time Louisiana recipes by the Eleven Prudhomme Brothers and Sisters and Chef Paul Prudhomme". it is a masterpiece and a treasured cookbook in my house.

Every time I see the name of this thread I think it's for a new restaurant called "Gumbo's".

If the gumbo pictured up above were served there, I would totally go.

This thread really developed into a lively discourse. Nice.

I often use ideas picked out of Justin Wilson's cookbooks. As he himself explained, "I'm a cook, not a chef". Me, too. It ain't fine dining, but it's what I eat when in Louisiana. I met him once at a book signing at the old Kroch & Brentano's on Wabash. He showed me the teeny 1-oz bottles of Tabasco he carried whenever he ventured away from home. He, like John Folse, was a Cajun historian and folklorist in addition to cooking up a mean gumbo. And his father, Harry, was a long-time LA Commissioner of Agriculture. But I digress.

Proper sausage is probably the most difficult ingredient to find. Andouille is a distintively Louisiana product. I used to order it from a family-run smokehouse in Baton Rouge for which I long ago lost the contact info. Now I make the infrequent trip to Breaux Bridge or La Place...or, Wal-Mart! My local Supercenter carries Savoie's brand (admittedly not the best). The thing to look for in andouille is cubed or chunked pork versus the typical ground pork found in many commercial varieties. BTW, Jacob's has a mail order operation.

Here in mid-Georgia we have many sausage producers, but none making anything like andouille (or kielbasa for that matter).

Leon's makes an excellent andouille for the commercial market, but I've never seen it retail. Sometimes they have it at restaurant depot.

I haven't looked lately but in the past I have seem Leon's andouille at Harvest Time Market on Lawrence and Talman.

Love this thread.

My gumbo bible is Prudhomme's first book-Louisiana Kitchen. I've also tried the gumbo from Emeril's first book, which was respectable but not as good as Paul's. However, an Emeril recipe in the Tribune some years back for duck and wild mushroom gumbo was fantastic. This appeared before his TV fame when he was still a serious chef.

RevrendAndy wrote:Love this thread.

My gumbo bible is Prudhomme's first book-Louisiana Kitchen. I've also tried the gumbo from Emeril's first book, which was respectable but not as good as Paul's. However, an Emeril recipe in the Tribune some years back for duck and wild mushroom gumbo was fantastic. This appeared before his TV fame when he was still a serious chef.

I need to get some more of Chef Prudhommes books for sure. Also that duck and wild mushroom version sounds great.

That is what I like about gumbo, so many different animals, birds, fish and shellfish can be used.

little500 wrote:Proper sausage is probably the most difficult ingredient to find. Andouille is a distintively Louisiana product. I used to order it from a family-run smokehouse in Baton Rouge for which I long ago lost the contact info. Now I make the infrequent trip to Breaux Bridge or La Place...or, Wal-Mart! My local Supercenter carries Savoie's brand (admittedly not the best). The thing to look for in andouille is cubed or chunked pork versus the typical ground pork found in many commercial varieties. BTW, Jacob's has a mail order operation.

Another thing (in addition to grind size) that most commercially-available andouille outside of Louisiana gets wrong is the size of the sausage. Most good andouille you will find in Louisiana (certainly at the various smokehouses and butchers ranging roughly from La Place west to Lake Charles in south Louisiana) utilize beef middle casings as opposed to pork casings, for a larger diameter sausage (which helps with being able to use cubed/chunked pork).

I got some really good andouille a few weeks ago at Bergeron's in Port Allen, just across the river from Baton Rouge. I would rank it up there with some of my favorites from other Louisiana sources, including the Best Stop in Scott and WJ's Smokehouse in La Place. As I brought home 8 or so pounds of the Bergeron andouille, will try to document in this thread some gumbo-making utilizing it once I have the hankering for gumbo.

One gumbo I would like to try out that does not use andouille is Donald Link's Super Bowl gumbo from his Real Cajun cookbook (a really great cookbook, in my opinion). A link to the recipe is here. Seems a bit labor-intensive and pretty expensive (on account of all that seafood), but probably something I will try one of these days.

Matt wrote:Another thing (in addition to grind size) that most commercially-available andouille outside of Louisiana gets wrong is the size of the sausage. Most good andouille you will find in Louisiana (certainly at the various smokehouses and butchers ranging roughly from La Place west to Lake Charles in south Louisiana) utilize beef middle casings as opposed to pork casings, for a larger diameter sausage (which helps with being able to use cubed/chunked pork).

One gumbo I would like to try out that does not use andouille is Donald Link's Super Bowl gumbo from his Real Cajun cookbook (a really great cookbook, in my opinion).

Matt, exactly right on the size; beef casings are preferred. As to not using andouille in gumbo: try anything! The locals sure do. I've had gumbos with duck and turnip, all manner of seafood, rabbit, even nutria (did not like that one). Roux, the trinity, stock, then any and everything you find in the icebox.

Well, I'm all psyched up now to make some gumbo. I'll be using mojo-criollo-marinated and grilled chicken thighs and drumsticks, beef smoked sausage, frozen sliced okra, frozen saved shrimp shells, shell-on-shrimp ... all of the above because that's what I've got on hand.

I'm wondering if I can do some of this in my crock-pot. And if so, assuming I make the roux in a frying pan, do I add it at the start or at the end... does it matter?

Going with the suggestions to make the bulk of the gumbo without the shrimp and sausage, adding in one night's dinner's worth, and saving the rest of the "gumbo stock" for freezing and adding in shrimp and sausage per dinner later.

Big gumbo fan here too and I've made a lot of it, but mostly in the cooler months. I've tried a lot of recipes and I can't say that there's one I find so much better than others, although I'm probably partial to duck and andouille - and it holds up well when reheating which not all seafood gumbos do. Jimmy Bannos' recipe for chicken and andouille gumbo is pretty damn good, except I prefer to add a little chicken fat and dark meat into the mix. Sometimes I like it thick (with a little more roux), sometimes I like it a little thinner, sometimes with a little shrimp or crawfish . . . it all works. I've never tried making gumbo z'herbes, however, and I think that's coming up soon.

The best shortcut I've ever learned is Alton Brown's trick of preparing the roux in the oven, found here for those of you who are interested. This shortcut will dramatically change your gumbo-making days for the better and I can say that it's the best kitchen shortcut I've ever learned. The alternative is constantly stirring the f'ing roux on the stovetop and making sure it does not burn. It never burns for me in the oven, although it will take you longer than stated in Alton's recipe if like me you prefer a really dark roux.

As for andouille, I know that there are those who have complained here about Paulina Market's andouille . . . something about an off-flavor, but I've always thought it works well in a pinch. However, I tend to make gumbo in large batches and so I order pounds of andouille from a couple different places in LaPlace, LA - Baileys Andouille and Jacob's World Famous Andouille. Both offer an outstanding product, great service and shipping to Chicago . . . not sure which I like more but both are considerably better than anything I've found here . . . great just grilled on their own too. Of course, I have not tried them all and I have not yet tried any of Ream's products but I hope to soon. I'll note that there's a Wayne Jacob's in LaPlace which I believe is run by a relative of the Jacob running the Jacob's World Famous I've linked to, and I've heard it might offer a better product, but they do not ship. It is mentioned in this thread.

And so nobody gets shortchanged, here are links to a couple of LTH discussions about Cajun/Creole cooking and andouille sausage.

Thanks for starting this thread Jim . . . great subject for discussion and some beautiful cooking. As for traditional and non-traditional, in my opinion as long as you have the holy trinity, andouille, roux and file (at least for me), you've got gumbo . . . experiment away.

BR: thanks for reminding me of Alton Brown's method of baking roux. It is indeed less of a chore than making it on the stovetop. For those who find even this simpler method challenging, you can find jars of ready-made roux at the supermarket. I've run across Bootsie's, Kary's, Savoie's to name a few. Most cooks will not find any difference here except the convenience factor.

katie: I would not start the process in a crockpot. Make (or buy) a roux, fry veggies in roux, add stock, simmer, add meats/seafood, add seasonings, simmer, serve. Your crockpot could take over at the first simmer stage. Ingredients (after roux/veggies/stock) are up to the cook. Anything goes. Personally, I would not use mojo-criollo marinated meat, but, hey, you may come up with a Latin fusion gumbo and be the next Food Network Star!!!

I like the taste of file so I use it even if there is okra in the gumbo. I also like heat so I add hot peppers with the bell. Cook it up, locate some rice and a loaf of bread, crack open a Yuengling....mmmm

Had my gumbo last night with no egg. After 2 nights in the fridge the flavors really had come together even more. And the smoked chicken gave off more flavor. This time I topped each spoonfull with a slice of fresh jalapeno from jens garden. really nice.

I have heard of the roux in the oven method but have yet to try it. I kind of enjoy standing over the molten lard and flour mix stirring as I drink a beer.

Doing the chicken seperate on the grill or smoker is a nice variation. I also like doing the chicken in the same pan I do the roux in using the cooked off chciken fat as the base of the roux, really packs flavor, that roux you really have to keep an eye on.

little500 wrote:I like the taste of file so I use it even if there is okra in the gumbo. I also like heat so I add hot peppers with the bell.

I'm with you on both the file and the hot peppers . . . the file adds such a unique taste. You just need to make sure never to bring the gumbo to a boil after adding file because it will get stringy (or so I hear - I've never let it happen) so you just add it at the very end. Heat from jalapenos/serranos is great too. If gumbo sticks to your ribs, I suppose it's the hot peppers that separate it from your ribs.

jimswside wrote:I have heard of the roux in the oven method but have yet to try it. I kind of enjoy standing over the molten lard and flour mix stirring as I drink a beer.

If I was drinking beer while taking the time to constantly stir the roux, I'd be drunk by the time the roux was finished. I find that you have to keep the temperature just low enough where you don't burn the roux . . . burnt roux (as opposed to a dark, smoky roux) ruins a great pot of gumbo.

BR wrote:

jimswside wrote:I have heard of the roux in the oven method but have yet to try it. I kind of enjoy standing over the molten lard and flour mix stirring as I drink a beer.

If I was drinking beer while taking the time to constantly stir the roux, I'd be drunk by the time the roux was finished. I find that you have to keep the temperature just low enough where you don't burn the roux . . . burnt roux (as opposed to a dark, smoky roux) ruins a great pot of gumbo.

lol.

a few of my friends from cajun country(and myself) measure the ammount time stirring their roux by how many beers they consume eg. a 2 beer roux, or a 3 beer roux.

dk wrote:Leon's makes an excellent andouille for the commercial market, but I've never seen it retail. Sometimes they have it at restaurant depot. I lu-u-u-u-v Parkerhouse hot links they are absolutely the best, and will have to try it in gumbo sometime.

I have a really strong feeling that if Parkerhouse snausages are not already a board favorite, if the word spreads, they soon will be. I'm really not a big sausage fan, but I lu-u-u-uv them too.

Do you know if they make a mild? I (perhaps incorrectly) only thought they made "hot," so GWiv's picture, in which he was not sure if there was a "hot,' the product he snapped was, in fact, "hot."

I wouldn't suggest starting the gumbo in the crock pot either. But, after it's established...maybe. I prefer a large enameled dutch oven for all the cooking. I make mine similar (in fashion) to the way another poster did above, although I add my meat and seasoning after I cook the trinity with the roux...then I'll add the stock.

I suppose I'm another person that likes to spend the time stirring the roux. This is where I say I prefer the cajun gumbo, with its developed roux, over the creole gumbo version with a lighter roux and the addition of tomatoes. But again...all gumbo is gold!

Back to the roux...I really like a nice developed roux. I don't think of it as time lost...I think of roux as a sort of mood ring. The darker and more developed the roux, the better my mood must have been. Splatter burns are just a bonus It does take a long while to develop a good dark walnut roux...but it's sooooooo good!

dan

jimswside wrote:

BR wrote:

jimswside wrote:I have heard of the roux in the oven method but have yet to try it. I kind of enjoy standing over the molten lard and flour mix stirring as I drink a beer.

If I was drinking beer while taking the time to constantly stir the roux, I'd be drunk by the time the roux was finished. I find that you have to keep the temperature just low enough where you don't burn the roux . . . burnt roux (as opposed to a dark, smoky roux) ruins a great pot of gumbo.

lol.

a few of my friends from cajun country(and myself) measure the ammount time stirring their roux by how many beers they consume eg. a 2 beer roux, or a 3 beer roux.

A day or two at a Cajun hunting/fishing camp gives one a whole different perspective on time, beer, and food. Also critters in the middle of the night.