(01-04-2016, 10:18 PM)Mae Wrote: Gumbo is... very varied, as far as I can tell. I've had it where it is more stew/curry like in Louisiana, I've had it where it was more soup-like in Mississippi. I think the general rule is "if it tastes good, you didn't do it wrong". I personally liked the soupier version I got in this backwater truck-stop diner in southern Mississippi the best; it had been cooked so long that everything had basically dissolved into this thick, muddy, oh-so-tasty bowl of sludge that the cook topped with a scoop of rice. I had to pick out bones (I like to tell myself that it was chicken or turkey, but for all I know it was armadillo, gator, or nutria), but it was entirely worth it.
Gumbo file, or 'file powder', is dried powdered sassafras leaves. As I understand it, you don't use file powder with okra unless you want a hagfish-slime mess. Similarly, you don't want to add the file powder until after you take the gumbo off the heat, and you don't even want to add it then if you're not planning on eating the entire batch in one go -- sprinkle it into plated bowls. Seriously, unless your hubby has an allergy to it, you're better off with the okra. Cut it up fine and don't tell him it's in there (or cook it long until it all falls apart), and he won't notice. The characteristics that turn most people off about okra are the things that people look for in gumbo.
When you make the roux, you want continuously stir it and cook it until it looks like peanut butter and smells like Ritz crackers. I suggest making a double batch, because sometimes it doesn't thicken up quite as much as you want it to and, refrigerated, it can last a week or so and makes for my favorite type of roux for macaroni and cheese. Once it's cooked, I would also suggest scooping it all out into a cool dish or taking the pot and placing it in a dish with a bit of cold water in it. Leaving it in the pot with a hot bottom, even off the heat, it can continue to cook and scorch within a couple minutes.
Oh, and this type of roux gets super hot. And sticks. Handle it like you would melted sugar for caramel. It's nicknamed "Cajun Napalm" for a reason.
What makes gumbo "gumbo" is the roux. You need to buy a good roux, or learn to make a good roux (which, thankfully, I have learned how to do!).
File powder is totally used with okra, it just changes when you use it. It doesn't mess with the okra at all from what I've seen. It's not gumbo if there's no okra, tbh. At least not gumbo that anyone here would claim. And, no offense, but Mississippi ain't Louisiana, and they ain't Cajun. And Cajuns are who came up with gumbo.
The okra will be slimy unless you pan fry it for a few mins before you add it to the gumbo. That stops it from being slimy when you put it in the gumbo.
There are some really good recipes on the internet that I'm sure you can try and make with good success. You can also buy roux for a gumbo in jars at the grocery store, or at least you can here.
Edit: This is a fairly accurate recipe similar to ones I've seen and made here, you can swap out the meats really easily, just throw whatever in there and it should come out great:
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-cultu...92/?no-ist
Edited to Add: I mentioned this to my boss at work. She's from Baton Rouge and makes...divine gumbo. She said that the nice thing about gumbo is that it can accommodate allergies and likes/dislikes, so if you're allergic to seafood, you don't have to use it in there, or maybe you don't like crawfish, you don't have to put it in there. Just use chicken, or sausage, or even something else. Could probably get away with pork if you really wanted to.
![[Image: hFalP38.jpg]](http://i.imgur.com/hFalP38.jpg)
