Seafood Gumbo: Rich, Tasty, and Delicious

This recipe is amazing for just about any family get together.  It makes a ton of gumbo and with the addtion of the rice and garnishes it can be stretched a long way as well.

Ingredients:

Roux

3/4 cup vegetable oil (this can also be a combination of butter and oil)

1 cup all-purpose flour

Base

1 1/2 cups finely chopped onions

3/4 cup finely chopped green bell peppers

3/4 cup finely chopped celery

2 tablespoons minced garlic

Gumbo Goodies

8 cups seafood stock

One pound of sliced Okra (frozen or fresh)

12-ounce bottle beer, Amber

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

3 bay leaves

3 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (can be omitted or added to)

1 pound Andouille sausage smoked (sliced 1/2 inch thick) (this is for additional hardiness but can be left out for a purely seafood gumbo)

Fish (approximately 4 pounds total)

1 pound large/medium (21-25 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 pound, 1inch cubed, firm white fish fillets such as halibut

1 pound additional seafood any combination of the following works:

• baby clams
• crab meat
• scallops
• octopus
• etc

2 tablespoon Emeril's Original Essence

2 cups shucked oysters with their liquor

Garnish

1/2 cup chopped tender green onion tops

White Rice, for serving

In a large 10 quart stockpot, add the seafood stock that is on medium heat.  You can at this point also add the shrimp shells, clam shells, crab shells, or any other discarded prep items to your stock.  Prior to adding any other ingredients, this will need to be strained and only the liquid retained and returned to the stock pot.

Heat a large, heavy skillet (preferrable cast iron) to medium heat with the oil/butter in it.  Add the flour and continue stirring/scraping the pan for about 20-25 minutes until the roux achieves a milk chocolate color.  Do not be afraid of darkness here....most people will stop cooking long before the desired color is achieved.  Add onions, bell pepper, and celery to the roux continually stirring the mixture.  Be very careful as there is a reason a roux is referred to as Cajun Napalm.  It clings and burns like the original namesake.  Cook the roux for another 5 minutes (remember to keep stirring) and then add the garlic for another 30 seconds.

Add the roux mixture to the Stock mixture that has been heated in the first step.  Add the Okra, beer, thyme, bay leaves, Worcestershire, salt, cayenne, and sausage.  Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 1 hour.  You will need to skim the foam and oil that rises to the top during the simmer period.

Season the fish and shrimp pieces with the Essence.  Add the uncooked seafood except oysters (fish, shrimp, octopus, scallops ) to the mixture after the 1 hour simmer period.  Let it cook for about 2-3 minutes.  Add your cooked seafood and oysters (crab, clams, etc).  Cook for an additional 5 minutes.  You can now season to your taste at this point.

Serve in a bowl with rice (some prefer the rice on top, some prefer it on bottom) and add the green onions as a garnish over the top.  Enjoy!!!

African Beef Stew That is Amazing!!!!

Stew Components:

2 tbsp. Vegetable Oil
2 lbs. Beef (Round Steak, Roast, Flank, etc.) cut into 1 1/2 inch - 2 inch cubs
1/2 c. Chopped Onion
1/2 tsp. Curry Powder
1 tsp. Fresh Minced Ginger
1/2 tsp. Salt (or to taste)
1 c. Tomato Juice
1 c. Beef Stock
6-12 drops Tabasco (I find that I tend to be a little heavy handed with the Tabasco and probably double the high amount)

Heat oil in pan until HOT and add the beef to the pan. This will splatter a little so be prepared. Brown the meat on all sides and then remove the meat from the pan.

Add the onions to the drippings left in the pan and cook until soft. Add the meat back to the pan along with the curry powder, ginger, and salt. Stir fry this mixture for right at 1 minute and then add tomato juice, beef stock, and Tabasco.

Bring this to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 1.5 to 2.5 hours (essentially until the meat is tender).

Rice for Soup:

1 tbsp.  Vegetable Oil
1 Clove Garlic,  Halved
Salt to taste
1 c. Uncooked Rice
1 c. Water, Hot
1 c. Beef  Stock, Hot
In a heavy pan (preferrebly a Cast Iron Dutch Oven), heat the vegetable oil and then add the garlic clove cooking until it is golden (not burnt). Remove the garlic clove and discard. Add the rice to the oil and stir it well so that the rice is fully coated. Add the ingredients, hot water and stock, along with salt. After bringing the rice to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and cook for 20 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender.

GARNISHES:

1 c. pineapple chunks
1 jar chutney (your choice)
1 c. chopped peanuts

Keep all components warm until you are ready to serve them. Place 1/2 c rice in each serving bowl and spoon the stew over it. Serve garnish in small bowls on the side. Enjoy!!!!

Soup...How did we get here?

Soup and Cooking

It can probably be assumed if not completely verified, that the concept of a soup has been with our ancestors since the advent of fire. With that in mind, you would also be correct to assume that the history of soup is inextricably linked to the origin of and history of cooking in general.  Most likely cooking started out as fire roasting game and the use of water to soften grains.  Cooking the harder grains of the ancient times would have created an interesting and thick mixture that was much easier on the teeth than other methods.

Why the name soup?

The origin of our modern day 'soup' was can be traced to the French words "sop" and/or "soupe", which loosely translates in reference to something that is soaked. That would pretty much sum up our modern day interpretation of the loose, broth mixtures that most of us would recognize as soup. Prior to the entry of soup into our vocabulary, it was often referred to as broth or porridge. As much as we would like to categorize things in nice little boxes, chefs of our era are intent on de-constructing, re-inventing, and spinning the concept of just about every type of food (including soups) into something that is not recognizable or does not meet our generalizations. Modern day soup can be many things that defy a general definition.

A soup in laymen terms is an over-reaching term for the many different varieties of foods defined by both cultural and geographical differences. Gruel (isn't that appetizing), stews, porridges, chowders, borscht, gumbo, etc. are all names for specific regional foods that can be attributed to the soup categorization. There are so many areas to explore when it comes to the production and sampling of soups that I suspect this blog will grow beyond control as it is developed fully.

 Old World Facts

The sop term used by the French was particularly relevant for their type of soup. It consisted mainly of a clear broth with a piece of bread used to eat it. The bread was the primary method by which the soup was transferred to the mouth of the diner. Over time the use of spoons became more prevalent, as well as the addition of other food items to the sop, so that the thickness and consistency of the product was not consistent with the use of bread as the primary means for eating.

The classical 19th century kitchen saw the inclusion of many nutritious elements their soup base and probably lends itself best to our current day interpretation. They would include a myriad of vegetables, a variety of poultry, fish, game, and meats, and the liquid content.

The 'invention' of soup also contributed greatly to increasing the life span of individuals in the early periods of humanity. The lack of dental care and the use of grains in the diets of our ancestors contributed to the quick erosion of the teeth of these individuals. Once a form of sustenance could be created that did not require chewing or ripping meat from a bone, there was now the capability of providing for the less fortunate members of a tribe that had taken sick. This attribute of soups contributed to the old world creation of Restoratifs which is the word our modern day restaurant owes its origin to.