DEL.ICIO.USSOUTHERN RECIPE RESTORATION PROJECT
Gumbo recipesThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/15/07
"When I was taught how to make gumbo by an old Cajun, I was told to add one thing that nobody else knew about, to make it your own," explains chef Linton Hopkins, who worked in several New Orleans restaurant kitchens before opening Restaurant Eugene in Atlanta. "I adopted the concept of a totem or mojo in order to celebrate the power of gumbo and the uniqueness of my recipe. Each person who tries to make this gumbo needs to add their own mojo. It could be a piece of fennel or sarsaparilla root or a bundle of sage." Whatever it is, it should enhance its flavor — not overwhelm it.
Hopkins, a member of our Saving Southern Food chefs panel, was inspired by the story of Ezekiel Bray's gumbo — shared by Glen Bray of Columbus — and made a version of it in his kitchen, along with one of his own.
He and each of the gumbo cooks featured here all have their special "mojo"; use them as inspiration to find yours.
You, too, can share an heirloom recipe and honor a loved one for our ongoing Southern Recipe Restoration Project. Go to ajc.com/food, under Recipe Restoration Project, click on Submit Yours and fill out the form. Or e-mail it to savingsouthernfood@ajc.com. Or mail it to Southern Recipe Restoration Project, c/o Food Editor Susan Puckett, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 72 Marietta St. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30303.
Gumbo Z'Herbes
8 servings
Hands on: 25-45 minutes
Total time: 2 1/2-3 hours
This is about as close to a vegetarian gumbo as you can get, though some people add a bit of salt pork to the mix. It's adapted from one shared with us by Judy Walker, food editor of the New Orleans Times-Picayune. She tells us that this is considered a Lenten Gumbo, and that it is typically prepared with an odd number of greens, typically seven or more. As the story is told, it's thought that if there are seven greens, you'll make seven new friends.
For years Leah Chase, chef of the famed Dooky Chase Restaurant, has what has become a Holy Thursday mainstay in the Crescent City, the Gumbo Z'Herbes Party. This gumbo is brothy, not thick. Add as many greens as you want. Just make sure the number is an odd one.
(Tip: You can save on the prep time considerably if you buy the greens already bagged.)
1/2 pound collard or mustard greens (or both), chopped
1/2 pound turnip greens (optional), chopped
1/2 pound spinach, chopped
1/2 pound green cabbage leaves, cut into strips
1 small bunch fresh watercress (optional), chopped
1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 green onions, trimmed and chopped
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
Place the greens, spinach, cabbage, watercress and parsley in a stock pot and cover with 6 cups water. Add the cayenne, black pepper, bay leaf, thyme and allspice. Bring the mixture to a boil, pressing the greens down into the water. Cook about 30 minutes, until the greens are tender.
In a saucepan, combine the oil and flour over medium heat. Stirring constantly, make a roux the color of peanut butter, about 10 minutes. Add the green onions, onions and garlic. Cook, stirring, until the vegetables soften, about 5 minutes. Stir the roux mixture into the greens and simmer, partially covered, for about two hours. Adjust the seasonings to taste.
Serve over rice with French bread.
Per serving: 101 calories (percent of calories from fat, 57), 3 grams protein, 9 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 7 grams fat (1 gram saturated), no cholesterol, 39 grams sodium.
Ezekiel's Shrimp Gumbo
8 servings
Hands on: 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
We tested this recipe as Glen Bray submitted it, with delicious results. Hopkins also made it in his restaurant kitchen — but tried it the way Bray sometimes makes it for his children — by frying the okra and placing it on top. Hopkins lightly flours the slices first, dips them in buttermilk-cornmeal breading, then flash-fries them.
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped parsley, plus extra for garnish
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups sliced okra
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Tabasco sauce to taste
2 pounds raw large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Salt
4 cups hot cooked rice
Melt the butter in a stockpot over medium heat. Slowly stir in the flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until the roux is dark brown, taking care not to let it burn, about 15 minutes.
Add the onion, bell pepper, celery, garlic and parsley to the roux. Cook, stirring constantly, until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Slowly stir in the broth, then add the okra, pepper, Worcestershire and a few dashes of Tabasco sauce. Cover; simmer on low 30 minutes.
Add the shrimp; simmer 3 to 5 minutes or until shrimp turn pink and opaque. Season to taste with salt and additional pepper and Tabasco. Serve over rice; garnish with additional chopped fresh parsley.
Per serving: 413 calories (percent of calories from fat, 32), 30 grams protein, 38 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 15 grams fat (8 gram saturated), 204 milligrams cholesterol, 699 milligrams sodium.
Grandmother Gloria's New Orleans Gumbo
16-20 servings
Hands on: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Total time: 4 hours, 15 minutes
Qiana Crump uses her 22-quart stockpot to make this kitchen-sink gumbo designed to feed a crowd.
Though Crump's grandmother used a knife and hammer to cut her turkey necks, you could use a meat cleaver or, easier yet, have your butcher do it. This is traditionally served for holiday or other celebratory feasts. "This takes a long time to make," Crump says, "but there's a lot of love in it."
2 tablespoons black pepper
2 tablespoons McCormick's Season-All
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 pounds turkey necks, cut into 2-inch rounds
3 pounds chicken drumettes
1 pound chicken necks, cut into 2-inch rounds
1 pound stew beef, chopped into 1-inch cubes
2 pounds smoked sausage links, sliced into 1-inch rounds
2 pounds Patton's hot sausage or other hot sausage, rolled into 1/2 inch balls
1 cup vegetable oil, plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups all-purpose flour (more if needed)
3 large yellow onions, finely chopped
3 green bell peppers, seeded and finely chopped
4 celery ribs, finely chopped
15 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
8 green onions, green stems only, chopped
1 cup chopped curly parsley
12 (15-ounce) cans low-sodium chicken stock
2 tablespoons dried thyme
2 tablespoons Zatarain's Creole Seasoning
2 tablespoons tomato paste
6 pounds raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
6 blue crabs, split in half lengthwise
3 tablespoons filé
About 8-10 cups cooked rice
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a small bowl, combine black pepper, Season-All and garlic powder. Working in batches, coat the turkey necks, chicken drumettes, chicken necks and stew beef with seasoning mixture. On two or three nonstick baking sheets, put the chicken necks and turkey necks in single layers and bake in oven for 35 minutes. Shake pans midway through to brown evenly.
While the necks bake, in a large skillet on the stove, working in batches, sauté drumettes, beef and sausage over medium-high heat until browned on all sides. Once browned, transfer meat to paper towels to absorb any excess oil. Reserve pan drippings. Set necks and other meats aside.
In a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 cup vegetable oil. Slowly stir in flour, combining well with oil; lower heat to medium. For the next 20 to 30 minutes, constantly stir the flour and oil (roux) slowly, letting it brown to a caramel color. Do not let it char or scorch. Turn off heat and remove skillet from burner.
In an extra-large stockpot, over medium heat, add remaining 1 tablespoon oil or 1 tablespoon reserved pan drippings. Add chopped onions, peppers, celery, garlic, green onions and parsley and sauté until glossy and onion is translucent. Then add the roux to the vegetables, coating well. Add chicken stock; stir. Bring to a slow boil, lower heat and cook over medium heat for 45 minutes.
Stir in thyme, Creole seasoning, beef, turkey necks, sausage, chicken necks and drumettes and tomato paste. Cook another 45 minutes to an hour. Add shrimp, crabs and filé; adjust seasonings to taste. Cook 20 minutes or until crabs and shrimp are bright pink.
Serve in bowls with spoonfuls of hot white rice.
Per serving, based on 16 (without rice): 893 calories (percent of calories from fat, 56), 74 grams protein, 23 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 54 grams fat (15 grams saturated), 417 milligrams cholesterol, 1,753 milligrams sodium.
Potato Salad for Gumbo
10 to 12 servings
Hands on: 15 minutes
Total time: 1 1/2 hours
While rice is the presumed accompaniment to gumbo, in Cajun country, the practice is to serve gumbo with potato salad, said Judy Walker, food editor of the New Orleans Times Picayune. Either on the side or in a heaping dollop right in the middle of the bowl.
Sound odd? Jennifer Guzman says that's the only way to eat it. "It defeats the purpose of making gumbo if you don't have potato salad," said Guzman.
She and her fiance fled New Orleans the Sunday before Hurricane Katrina hit. Now they call Dunwoody home. Still she returns to New Orleans from time to time to load up on D & D Smoked Sausage, hot sausage, fresh shrimp and crawfish which she brings back in huge ice chests. ("They don't eat here like we eat back home," she said of her 470-mile grocery runs).
As her gumbo simmers, she whips up a batch of potato salad, barely tinged with mustard, piqued with hand chopped dill pickle relish. "You get a spoonful of gumbo and a spoonful of potato salad. Ooo, the cool and hot together. It tastes so good going down."
Though Guzman lets her eggs boil as long as the potatoes, it's fine to add the eggs about 40 minutes into the cooking process.
5-6 large russet potatoes
6-8 hard-boiled eggs
3-4 rounded tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon mustard
2 medium dill pickles, finely chopped
3-4 scallions, tops only, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
In a large stock pot, put potatoes in bottom and eggs on top of potatoes and fill with cool water. Heat potatoes and eggs over medium heat for 1 hour. Test to make sure potatoes are fork tender.
Remove eggs and potatoes. Place eggs in cold water bath for 15 minutes or until cool enough to handle, then peel. Allow potatoes to cool 15 minutes or until cool enough to handle, then carefully peel.
Chop eggs. Place potatoes in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher until large chunks are gone or crumble them by hand. Add eggs and remaining ingredients and stir until well combined.
Serve either on the side of the gumbo or in a scoop directly in the bowl.
Per serving, based on 10: 102 calories (percent of calories from fat, 54), 4 grams protein, 8 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 6 grams fat (1 gram saturated), 114 milligrams cholesterol, 1155 milligrams sodium.
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