Seafood Gumbo Recipe - Lafayette Style

Seafood Gumbo

Everyone ought to love seafood gumbo. Surprisingly it relatively easy to make. The Recipe, as it appears, was taken from Talk About Good: Le Livre de la Cuisine de Lafayette, Published by the Junior League of Lafayette. I did so, so that one might be certain of the "real thing."

Ingredients
3 large spoons lard	1 can fresh crabmeat
3 spoons flour	several whole crabs
1 large onion (yellow)	1 lb. peeled shrimp
2-3 pods garlic	1 pint oysters and liquid
1/2 bell pepper	1/2 c parsley
3 qt water	3-4 chopped green onion
salt, red & black pepper

Make the roux with the lard and flour - cook slowly, stirring often until brown. Cut up onion, garlic, bell pepper and add to roux. Slowly add about 3 quarts of water, stirring while you pour. Salt and pepper to taste (season well). Then, add a can of fresh claw crabmeat and several cleaned whole crabs and cook about an hour. Then add one or more pounds of raw peeled shrimp and liquid from a pint of oysters and cook until shrimp are done. About 30 minutes before serving add the chopped parsley and green onion. About 15 minutes before serving add the oysters. Serve on rice. Be sure to have a bottle of fresh Filé on hand so each person can add his own. This freezes well. I do not freeze the gumbo with the oysters in it, but add fresh ones before serving

Notes on Ingredients:
I substitute Crisco or olive oil for the lard. About 1 c each flour/oil. One can use that pre-chopped garlic in liquid. The crab meat and oysters: pints available at most fish departments at grocery stores. Whole crab can be hard to find. Whole crab claws may be used. I always use somewhat more than the recipe calls for of the parsley and green onion.

Notes on Roux:
This is the heart of your gumbo, so pay special attention to its preparation. Cook in a cast iron skillet stirring constantly with a heavy spatula. Scrape flour off bottom of skillet when you "stir." This is sort of a Zen process - be prepared. It will take some time depending on how high your heat. The slower the better but be ready to remove skillet from heat and stir more rapidly if it appears to be burning. Cook until the roux appears chocolate brown in color.

When done I transfer the roux to a larger pot - to more easily work with the larger quantities of stuff to come. However, before the transfer you'll want to "pre-cook" the onions and garlic by adding them to the roux just as it nears being done. Sauté them until limp. Often I add course ground black pepper, red pepper and salt at this point.

Notes on Serving:
Serving, of course, is over rice. Rice, like roux, is not really that hard to do the real way. It's best to always cook rice in two cup (dry) quantities. If that

that means too much left over - well, you can cook one cup but one can always use extra rice. . . To make rice, use regular long grain. If you use one cup dry rice, cook in two cups water. Sometime I'll dump just a tad out so that it's a little less that two full cups. Again, it helps to use a cast iron pot or skillet but a Riverware type pot can be used too. Bring the water to a rapid boil. Add a teaspoon of salt - skip the oil so many use. Dump in rice and let cook uncovered at rapid boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Then tun the heat to low, cover, and cook 15 minutes longer. At the end of the 15 minutes push pot to a cool burner at let sit there until ready to serve (or for at least 5 minutes).

Gumbo is more "soupy" than "stewy." Those who like a thicker consistency add Filé. Filé is ground Sassafras leaves ad has a light aroma and flavor which will not alter much the flavor of the gumbo.

Unless you're sure all who will be partaking can handle traditional doses of red pepper don't add so much while cooking. Red pepper can be satisfactorily add after the fact by individuals upon serving.

Taking care when peeling shrimp make for more pleasant eating.

Crawfish can be used also, in addition to the shrimp.

A capful of Zatarain's liquid crab boil while cooking the gumbo is often helpful.

I freeze the oysters too.


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