Seafood Gumbo!
I’ve been a little under the weather this week, fighting off a cough and my voice was a little “whisky and cigarettes” for a couple of days. It would be kind of sexy sounding if it wasn’t for the very un-sexy hacking that came along with it. But you know what’s good for a cold (I hope)? Some spicy, hot gumbo!
So I will say, stirring that roux for over 20 minutes was not really my idea of a good time, but man was it worth it! By the time I was finished, it was a very silky, smooth, dark caramel color. As soon as the vegetables hit it and started to cook, whoa momma did it smell good! This one was pretty time-intensive, (I started chopping at 3 p.m. and we ate at 6:30) but it’s very much worth the effort if you have some time to kill. We have leftovers for tomorrow, and I saved about half the broth and froze it. We can pull that out, heat it up and add more shrimp and okra, and have a delicious quick meal that won’t taste quick!
There’s not a darn thing I would change with this recipe. (Oh, well, except that I did leave the oysters out, because eww.) But the base is very versatile. I think it would be great with some roasted, shredded chicken and some Andouille sausage. Sounds like a good use for a rotisserie chicken! It was fine without the oysters, by the way. There are very few things I WON’T eat, but that’s one of them.
This would have been great with some crusty warm bread to dip in the broth, but since we served it over rice, I thought that was enough carbs for one meal. Things are lookin’ a little chubby around here these days, unfortunately. Oops. (The next cooking season might have to be Salad Spring.) Until then, do yourself a favor and buy a copy of the Jubilee cookbook, because so far everything we’ve made from it has been EXCELLENT. If you live in Franklin, you can find it at the Wild Geese Bookshop (hi Tiffany!). If you don’t live in Franklin, well, that’s your own fault. Come visit.
Cheers! ~ Jen
