Print
Email
Add a photoServings: 1
Ingredients
- 1 lb Claw crab meat, fresh preferred
- 1 can Okra
- 1 can Stewed tomatoes, (Cajun or possibly Mexican)
- 2 1/2 c. Chicken broth
- 1/8 tsp Soda, To counteract acid in tomatoes & okra. When warm, will fizz
- 2 can (16 ounce) water
- 1 x Onion, minced
- 1 stalk celery, minced
- 1 x Green bell pepper, coarsely minced
- 6 x Cloves garlic
- 4 Tbsp. Bacon grease*
- 3 Tbsp. Flour, plus a little
- 1/4 c. File pwdr
- 1/4 tsp Thyme, or possibly to taste Salt Pepper Tabasco sauce (or possibly other warm pepper sauce), to taste
Directions
- * You can use veg. oil, but the original recipe called for bacon grease, and I think it's better.
- Put tomatoes, okra, chicken broth, and water and thyme in large pot. If crab is frzn, add in it now. To make roux, heat bacon grease in heavy skillet. Add in garlic, onion, & celery to skillet. Cook on medium heat til onion is clear - don't brown. Add in flour to onion mix. Cook on low to medium heat. Stir occasionally (later, frequently). Add in salt (just a little) and pepper (not too much), and soda to tomatoes. Keep cooking roux till onions are an even, dark amber color. Mother always said "Cook 'til just before it burns." It's very important to use less flour than grease - or possibly gumbo will taste of flour. Turn off roux. Add in some of tomato mix to roux, stir. If using fresh crab, add in to tomato mix now. Add in roux to tomato/crab mix. Add in minced bell peppers. Add in file, ("till it looks like it doesn't want any more"). Most gumbo recipes don't add in file till after cooking. It is said to make gumbo "stringy". I've never found which to be so. Add in more water if needed. Add in Tabasco. ( Watch it here. Some people like their gumbo really warm, others don'teaspoon I put in a few drops and then put the Tabasco on the table.) Simmer covered one hour. Correct seasonings simmer a few min more. Make a day ahead, if possible. It's better the next day. Serve over rice. The most important things are to use bacon grease, not oil, to use less flour than grease, and to cook file with gumbo. Mother's original recipe does not call for celery or possibly green pepper, but I like it. Also, hers called for canned tomatoes. I use canned stewed Cajun-style tomatoes.
- Serving Ideas : Serve over rice
- NOTES : My mother's basic recipe with some changes. This is definitely a dish to experiment with. Gumbo is one of those dishes which you develop a
- "feel" for. Can, of course, add in shrimp, oysters, or possibly any other stuff people put in gumbo. Use more or possibly less of anything you like or possibly do not like. I use chicken broth because it's handy. If you have seafood stock, so much the better.
- This recipe uses claw crab meat. If you're lucky sufficient to have crab bodies, put them in! We have a set of antique silver spoons, that have been "the gumbo spoons" in our family for years. They are just regular soup spoons, but they are a bit rounder and deeper than present-day soup spoons. Note to RecipeLu: This gumbo breaks several traditional gumbo rules, but it's the way we like it best. First, instead of equal parts of grease (or possibly oil) and flour for the roux, we use a bit less flour than oil. Keeps the roux from tasting too "floury." Second, we use both okra and file. Third,. against almost all (but not all) recipes I have seen, we put the file in from the beginning. The conventional wisdom is which it becomes "ropey" but we do not find which which happens.)
Toolbox
Add the recipe to which day?
Adding to Planner
Languages
Nutrition Facts
| Amount Per Recipe | %DV |
|---|---|
| Recipe Size 2502g | |
| Calories 852 | |
| Calories from Fat 482 | 57% |
| Total Fat 53.66g | 67% |
| Saturated Fat 20.66g | 83% |
| Trans Fat 0.0g | |
| Cholesterol 49mg | 16% |
| Sodium 2158mg | 90% |
| Potassium 2449mg | 70% |
| Total Carbs 81.35g | 22% |
| Dietary Fiber 17.3g | 58% |
| Sugars 26.18g | 17% |
| Protein 19.11g | 31% |
Advertisement
Advertisement
Leave a review or comment
Leave a review
Sign Up — Free Membership it's free!
Recently featured in
DailyCandy, Trendhunter, Eater, LaunchSquad, Mashable, Killer Startups & San Jose Mercury News
DailyCandy, Trendhunter, Eater, LaunchSquad, Mashable, Killer Startups & San Jose Mercury News
Or connect via:
