| CATEGORY |
CUISINE |
TAG |
YIELD |
| Meats, Grains |
Cajun |
Cajun |
4 |
Servings |
INGREDIENTS
| 6 |
qt |
Turkey stock; made from your leftover turkey carcass |
| 1 |
c |
Flour |
| 1 |
c |
Oil (but if you *really* want to be decadent, use bacon fat) |
| 1 |
lb |
Leftover turkey meat; white and/or dark, chopped into bite-sized pieces |
| 1 |
lb |
Andouille or smoked sausage |
| 2 |
lb |
Shrimp |
| 2 |
lb |
Okra; sliced |
| 2 |
|
Onions; chopped |
| 1 |
bn |
Green onions with tops; chopped |
| 2 |
|
Bell peppers; chopped |
| 5 |
|
Ribs celery; chopped |
|
|
Several cloves garlic; minced |
| 3 |
|
Bay leaves |
| 1 |
bn |
Fresh parsley; chopped |
|
|
Creole seasoning to taste; OR black, white and cayenne peppers, to taste |
|
|
Few dashes Tabasco; or to taste. |
|
|
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste |
|
|
Steaming hot Louisiana long-grain rice |
INSTRUCTIONS
Blend oil (or bacon fat) and flour thoroughly in a thick skillet and cook
over medium-high to high heat, stirring CONSTANTLY. BE VERY CAREFUL NOT TO
BURN IT!! If you start to see lots of black specks in the roux, you've
screwed it up. Dump it out and start over. Keep cooking and stirring until
the roux gets darker and darker. It's best to use a very heavy bot or
skillet for roux-making, especially cast iron. With a good cast iron Dutch
oven or skillet, you can get a beautiful dark roux in only about 20
minutes.
If you prefer a blond or medium roux, cut down on the amount of roux you
use; dark roux does not have as much thickening effect since the starch is
so thoroughy cooked.
You should turn the fire down or off as the roux nears the right color,
because the heat from the pan will continue cooking it. You can also add
your onions, bell peppers and celery to the roux as it's near the end of
cooking to arrest the cooking process and to soften the vegetables (I like
to do it this way, and I recommend it). KEEP STIRRING until the roux is
relatively cool. Add the roux to the stock.
Slice the andouille or smoked sausage and brown, pouring off all the fat.
Saute the onions, green onions, bell pepper and celery if you haven't
already added them to the roux, and add to the stock. Add the sausage. Add
the bay leaves and Creole seasoning (or ground peppers) to taste and stir.
Bring to a boil and immediately reduce to a simmer; let simmer for about 30
minutes. Keep tasting and adjusting seasonings as needed.
Add the okra and cook another 30 minutes or so. Make sure that the
"ropiness" or "stringiness" from the okra is gone, then add the parsley and
the reserved turkey meat. Simmer for another 15 minutes, then add the
shrimp. Give it another 5-6 minutes or so, until the shrimp are just done,
turning pink. Be very careful not to overcook the shrimp; adding the shrimp
should be the last step. Adjust seasonings, adding salt, pepper and perhaps
Tabasco as needed. Remember that gumbo shouldn't be too spicy hot.
If there is any fat on the surface of the gumbo, try to skim off as much of
it as possible.
Serve generous amounts in bowls over hot rice. Sprinkle about 1/4-1/2
teaspoon of gumbo file' in your individual serving; just remember not to
put it in the pot and cook it with the gumbo; it doesn't work, and will
make the gumbo stringy.
A few years ago, I headed down to San Diego to have Thanksgiving dinner
with
continued in part 2
Posted to MM-Recipes Digest V4 #280 by Jim Kirk <captain@iquest.net> on Oct
24, 1997
A Message from our Provider:
“Jesus, what happened to your hands?#Little girl”