Dave's seafood and sausage gumbo
When the French authorities in colonial New Orleans sought to import slaves from Africa to power the plantations and other enterprises of the struggling young colony, they turned to the easiest source, which was the small area of western Africa that was under French control. The heart of this region centered around Senegambia -- the area made up by the modern nations of Gambia and Senegal. The Bambara and their cultural cousins who inhabited that region were organized into politically and socially complex tribute chiefdoms, with well-developed iron-working technology. And they brought to the young colony a rich cultural repertoire that would have a major and pervasive influence on the evolving culture of southern Louisiana, and indeed of America more broadly. In addition to their well-honed understanding of indigo production, their abilities at crafting wrought iron, and musical traditions that would be foundational for the growth of jazz, spirituals, blues, and eventually rock ‘n roll, the forced immigrants brought a host of new foods and preparation methods. These included the widespread use of rice, kidney and other beans of Latin American origin (introduced to western Africa as trade items by the Spanish), okra, bananas, and a preference for think soups and sauces, as well as for slow-roasted meats.
A common Senegambia word for okra was gombo, and from that vegetable combined with others, they made a thick hearty soup, rich in spices and accentuated by any number of meats. In addition to its own flavor, okra functions as a thickener. Yet those who have no fondness for it may thicken the soup in other ways, including celery and the almost ubiquitous roux that is the foundation of most gumbos. (There are a few cooks around who cling to the nineteenth century tradition of thickening with filé powder). You can find a well-informed concise history of gumbo by Mark Huntsman at https://whatscookingamerica.net/History/GumboHistory.htm.
My particular gumbo does begin with a roux. On the meat side, it includes shrimp, sausage, lump crab meat, and gumbo crabs. Depending on your preference, you could also add, crawfish tails, oysters, and pieces of pretty much any tubular sausage. Or you can scratch all the seafood and sausage and use shredded chicken (making the stock with chicken or just veggies rather than seafood). As with most things to eat, rules are merely broad guidelines, easily broken with a little creativity.
Dave’s Gumbo
This is recipe is not for novices. Many of the measures below are approximate, so you need to have and exercise your sense of proportion based on experience.
Ingredients
1 cup flour
¾ cup vegetable oil
1 ½ lb small to medium shrimp, peeled
2 cups dry white or brown rice, boiled
Polska or hot sausage of choice, cut into thin disks
1 large or two medium onions
1 green chopped bell pepper
1 chopped red bell pepper
1 tbsp. (or more) chopped garlic
1 lb okra, fresh or frozen, cut into disks
1bunch green onions, chopped
1 pkg (approx.. 5) gumbo crabs, cleaned and broken in half (If you can’t get these in your area, you can try blue crab claws or soft shell crabs)
Crab meat (completely optional; only if someone got a raise that week)
8-16 oz crawfish tails if you have them available.
½-1 cup finely chopped celery
Emeril’s Essence (recipe below)
Crystal or similar hot sauce
Cayenne pepper
Black pepper
White pepper (optional)
Directions
Peel shrimp. Toss shrimp in salt and a small amt of cayenne; cover and set aside. Use shrimp shells and whatever veggies are available to make about a half gallon of stock, which you can season with Essence (about 2 tsp max) and whatever other spices and herbs you like.
Heat vegetable oil over low medium heat. Slowly add flour and stir frequently until the roux is rich medium to reddish brown color and has a nutty smell. Add all vegetables (including chopped garlic) except the green onions. Stir constantly for about five more minutes until the vegetables are wilted. Place the roux/vegetable mixture aside.
In a gumbo pot, dutch oven, or other largish vessel, heat approx. 2 tsp.. of additional vegetable oil. Saute the disks of sausage until they’re lightly caramelized. Add a little stock to deglaze the pot. Add additional stock, alternating with spoonsful of the roux/veggie mix until you’ve added 6-8 cups of stock and all the roux mix. Add gumbo crabs, hefty dashes of hot sauce and each of the powdered peppers, a large pinch of cumin, and 1 ½ more tsp of Essence. Cover and cook over low heat (not boiling) for at least 30-60 minutes. Taste after 30-45 minutes and add additional seasonings as taste dictates. After this, the gumbo can sit covered without further cooking until later if necessary. A short while before serving, bring the gumbo to a simmer and add the shrimp, boiled crawfish tails if available, and and green onions (and crab meat if you’re using that). Simmer for 10 minutes and serve over boiled rice..
Emeril's Essence
Emeril Lagasse, deservingly a living legend in the realms of New Orleans cuisine, has generously made his recipe for this wonderful seasoning mix widely available. For me, “Essence” has become the spice mix of preference for virtually any seafood or vegetable dish.
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Yield:
Yield: 2/3 cup
Level:
Easy
Ingredients
2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme
Directions
Combine all ingredients thoroughly.
Put this in a sealed container and keep until needed. This is a great way to quickly season all kinds of seafood dishes, soups, jambalaya, etc.