This spicy and textured gumbo tastes best served hot over a bit of rice. It also makes for great leftovers!
Recipe courtesy of SideChef blogger Sami Berger
Makes 4-6 servings
Adapted from William and Sonoma cookbook. You can easily add other seafood or protein to the gumbo, just make sure to add them with just enough time for them to be cooked through, you don’t want to overcook anything! Feel free to use a pre-made Cajun seasoning blend if you prefer. If not, I have instructions for a blend below. Make sure to adjust salt and spiciness to taste. This version should yield a mildly spicy gumbo (although this will depend on how potent your cayenne is).
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons canola oil (divided)
- 250g okra, sliced into ½ inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 1 green pepper, diced
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, sliced
- 3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 2-3 tablespoons Cajun seasoning (see below)
- 2 bay leaves
- 5 cups of vegetable or chicken stock
- 1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
Cajun seasoning
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1-1 ½ teaspoon cayenne (depending on how spicy you want it)
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat up 2 tablespoons of canola oil. Fry okra until they start to brown, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside.
- Make your roux: Over medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons of canola oil, butter and flour to the pot. Stir with a wooden spoon constantly until the mixture smells nutty and turns a medium-shade of brown (about 3-4 minutes).
- Add red pepper, green pepper, yellow onion, garlic, and tomatoes. Stir, scraping the bottom of the pot and cook until softened, about 6-8 minutes. Make sure you keep stirri
- If you are making your own Cajun seasoning blend, mix all of the ingredients together in a small bowl. Add Cajun seasoning and cook for an additional 1 minute.
- Add bay leaves and stock. Bring to a simmer and simmer for about 30 minutes.
- Add shrimp and cook until cooked through.
