Creole Gumbo

My grandmother was born in New Orleans, spoke French as her first language and was a descendant of a casket girl. Her opinion was that gumbo is a reflection of family history. Okra draws from West African stews, filé from Native American cooking and roux from French techniques. All are legitimate and all can be combined. If it tastes "right" to you" it is right.

don't stir in filé. sprinkle over gumbo in the bowl just before eating. if reheated, filé causes gumbo to become stringy.

Think it goes without saying that gizzards can be omitted and no one would be the wiser

Your grandmother was right - gumbo reflects family history and tradition. I chuckle reading derogatory comments about this recipe from people outside of the Deep South who have never lived here or eaten genuine gumbo. This recipe produces the most delicious broth I've had for a long time, and the broth is the most important aspect of gumbo - not the meats, seafood or vegetables. It's all about the broth.

No one would be the wiser, but the dish would be the poorer.

That's the beauty of gumbo, Jane. Your cajun gumbo is a darker color (hence a darker roux) whereas file creole gumbo is typically lighter (hence a golden roux). There's no such thing as 1 fits all recipe for gumbo, which is why everyone's gumbo is so different! Trust the golden roux for Queen Leah's recipe.

I know nothing about authenticity regarding gumbo and it’s variations, but I think this is a good recipe, and is very flexible with regard to the exact ingredients. I do like cooking the rice separately and adding it at serving time. My wife is trying to control her carb intake but I am not so we like the flexibility to add as much or as little as our tastes or diets allow. One thing... if preparing the rice separately, you should significantly reduce the amount of water used to make the broth

I use green bell pepper, onion, celery but also add a seeded jalapeño pepper.
I sprinkle file' over the top of my gumbo after I turn it off and let it sit for 20 minutes. It doesn't slime when reheated unless you let it boil.

This Gumbo was outrageously good. I left out ham, gizzards and crab, because it already seemed like a ton of meat, and it didn't miss the omissions. We had it this past Sunday for Sunday Supper before Mardi Gras, and I would make it again and again, for no special occasion. Amazing!

Taught at my Cajun mother's knee to make Seafood or Okra Chicken gumbo, I question the 20 minutes to make the roux. When you add the liquid it lightens the gumbo so you want to let the flour/oil mixture darken to walnut brown. The amount of vegetables (onions, green bell pepper and celery) added should be substantial. A large portion of parsley is essential to the final flavor. Simmer at least 6 hours. Seafood can be added a few minutes before serving over rice as it cooks quite quickly.