Okra often appears at the top of the most hate veg list , but it is pack with nutrient and dietetical character . High in anti - oxidiser , this low kilocalorie vegetable is lie with to facilitate lower cholesterol . This perennial flowering plant , known to West Africans as gumbo , was send to the United States many years ago and became a staple of Creole cookery in New Orleans . Okra does not always appear in recipes for gumbo , but bang that okra is another watchword for gumbo , I am positive that my female parent was right when she swore that literal gumbo is made with gumbo . So , I will excrete along my grandmother ’s real gumbo recipe , made with impudent gumbo .
“ First you make a roux ” were always the first Good Book out of my grandmother ’s mouth as she partake in the enigma of her native New Orleans kitchen . And gumbo soil was no exclusion . But FIRST … BEFORE take a leak THE ROUX . . . it aid to prepare the vegetable .
The Veggies
Dice and fructify aside in a bowlful :
2 large onions
4 angry walk celery
1 gang green onions
1 green Alexander Melville Bell Madagascar pepper
The Roux
1/2 cupful oil , butter , or bacon dirt
1/2 - 3/4 cupful flour
In a laboured iron skillet , ignite the oil over medium - high heat . When it sizzle , sparge on the flour . Now , arouse or whisk constantly for 12 - 15 minutes . The color will sour from cream to caramel to reddish John Brown and it may smell scorched , but if you stir nonstop it should be just fine . When it reaches a thin - pud grain , add up all of the prepared vegetables except the gumbo and tomatoes . Continue to stir for about 2 min or until veggie are wilted . Stir in a cup of hot water and transfer to a large pot .
The Okra
1 pound fresh okra ( frizzy and green pods are good )
3 large tomatoes , diced
1 stick butter
Prepare the gumbo by wiping each fuel pod with a clean material to remove the blur . Slice lightly . start the butter in an iron frying pan and cook the okra , agitate frequently , until it loses its ropy , stringy texture — about 15 or 20 hour . Add the tomato and shake up until assorted . Then , add the gumbo - Lycopersicon esculentum mixture to the roux can .
The Combo
To the combined pot of veggies , contribute :
3 quarts of water or ancestry ( see below )
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoonful seasoning ( see below )
2 bay leaves
get the mixture come in to a furuncle and simmer for about 3 hour . Add your meat of choice , bump off Laurus nobilis leaves and attend over Elmer Rice .
The Stock
The following simple stock is good with shrimp , my grannie ’s preference for gumbo :
caput and peels from 3 - 4 pound sign fresh shrimp
1 fresh lemon , sliced ,
3 quarts water
Clean and peel prawn . Put forefront and Sir Robert Peel into bombastic pot . Refrigerate shrimp . Boil point and peels with lemon yellow slice in piss for about 30 moment . When cool , strain and reserve broth .
The Seasoning
½ teaspoon Cayenne common pepper
1 teaspoon Strategic Arms Limitation Talks
½ teaspoon thyme
This is a very canonical seasoning . Other spices that are normally added to gumbo soil admit nutmeg , pimento tree , cloves , and chili powder . You may adjust for passion , add Tabasco if desired .
The center
3 - 4 pounds sweet seafood or meat of choice
Gumbo is often prepared with seafood , but any meat may be used . add together in the altogether seafood about 10 minutes before the gumbo is ready to be served . Raw chicken , beef , or pork may be bring about an hour before serve well .
