Gumbo Recipe

Gumbo

• 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons of flour
• l large chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 5 or 6 cloves, chopped garlic
• 1 cup of chopped green pepper
• 1 can of tomato sauce
• 1 can of tomatoes ("Rotel" tomatoes for a spicier taste!)
• 1 pound, fresh sliced okra (or 2 boxes of frozen sliced okra)
• 2 pounds of fresh shrimp
• 2 - 3 cups water
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley
• 1 bay leaf

For seafood gumbo, add to the above:

• 1 small can of crabmeat or 3 fresh gumbo crabs
• 1 jar oysters
• Slowly stir the flour into heated oil in a heavy cast iron skillet. Continue to stir until the flour is dark brown. Add the next 4 ingredients; stir until onions are clear.
• Add tomato sauce. Stir until it gets crumbly or dry. Fry okra in another skillet until it is no longer sticky or stringy. Add tomatoes and fried okra.
• Cook slowly, adding 2 to 3 cups of water--a little at a time. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in one teaspoon of sugar.
• Cook for about an hour on a low fire, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking to the bottom of pot; adding water if necessary. Add the shrimp and the bay leaf (and if desired, the oysters and crabmeat).
• Cook another 30 minutes to an hour, adding seasoning to taste.
• Serve over boiled or steamed rice.

Cooking Crawfish

This will feed 8 people, or three Cajuns.

• Equiment needed: One large cooking pot with wire basket big enough to hold 25 pounds of Crawfish. A lid for the pot and a small outdoor propane cooker, as you will cook this outside.
• Go buy a six-pack of cold beer and drink the first one.
• Then go shopping for 25# sack of live Crawfish, 3 bags of crab boil, 1 small bottle of liquid crab boil, 3 round boxes of salt, 1 box square box of rock salt, 8 small onions, 8 small potatoes and 8 ears of corn, one fresh garlic, small can of cayenne pepper, 4 lemons, and a box of Tony Chachere's creole seasoning. Now that you're finished shopping, drink another beer.
• Now it's time to go to work cooking the Crawfish! One thing you must always remember about Crawfish....first separate the live Crawfish from the Crawfish that won't make it to the pot. Next you must purge the Crawfish. Get a large tub of water or two large ice chests. You will use this to purge the crawfish. Place the box of rock salt in the water. Stir the water with the salt and then place the Crawfish into the water. Let the Crawfish purge for 7 minutes. Remove the Crawfish and place in an ice chest until ready to cook. Time to drink another beer.
• Fill the pot with fresh water half full, place on cooker, and start the fire. Place a box and a half of salt into the water, 1 bag of crab boil, a half bottle of liquid crab boil, 2 teaspoons of cayenne pepper and two lemons cut in half--squeeze each half into the pot and drop the lemon. Separate the garlic into pods and cut the small ends of each garlic pod, then drop them into pot. Place lid on pot. Time to drink another beer.
• Let the water come to a boil for two minutes--that way the spices will mix well. Drop the 8 onions after cutting the ends--yes, drop the whole onion into the pot--4 minutes later, drop the 8 small potatoes; 4 minutes later, drop the 8 corns. Let it cook for five minutes. A good way to check for readiness is to take a fork or sharp knife and stab the potatoes and the onion. If it goes in easy, it is cooked. Lower the fire on the burner and remove the basket. Place the vegetable in a small clean ice chest--don't close the lid, just place foil on top. Place the basket back in the pot. Time to drink another beer.
• Turn the heat up on the burner, place the other two bags of crab boil in the pot, the rest of the liquid crab boil, and one large heaping teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Take the rest of the lemons cut in half, squeeze each half into the pot and drop the lemon. Place the last two boxes of salt into the water. When the water comes to a boil, place the Crawfish into the basket and place lid on top. Time for another beer. When the water comes back to a boil--you need to watch this part-- let it boil for 4 minutes, turn the fire off, let it simmer for 3 minutes, and remove.
• Now get an old table, and place old newspaper on top. Dump the basket of Crawfish on top of the newspaper, and sprinkle with Tony Chachere's creole seasoning. Dump the onions, potatoes, corn and garlic on top of the Crawfish. Now it's time to really drink beer and eat. You will love the vegetables, and you can cook them this way without having to cook Crawfish! Hope you pass a good time eating the Crawfish!
• I suggest that you make a sauce on the side using mayo, tomato ketchup, a little Worcestershire sauce, and little garlic power. Mix this to your liking. Use the sauce to dip your peeled Crawfish into if you desire.