Seafood Gumbo

Name: Seafood Gumbo
Prep time: 1 h 45 min
Cook time: 3 h 30 min
Total time: 5 h 15 min
Yield: 12 to 16 servings
Ingredients: At least 6 cold beers for the cook; 4 pounds medium (16 to 20 count) shrimp; 6 blue crabs; salt; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 1 small onion; 1 celery stalk; 2 garlic cloves; 2 teaspoons paprika; One (4-inch) rosemary sprig or 2 tablespoons dried; 13 bay leaves; 9 quarts (36 cups) cold water; 3 cups vegetable oil; 4 cups all-purpose flour; 1 large onion; 2 medium green bell peppers; 3 celery stalks; 2 Jalapeno peppers; 6 garlic cloves; 2 tablespoons salt; 2 teaspoons paprika; 2 teaspoons File powder; 2 teaspoons store-bought or homemade chili powder; 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper; 1 teaspoon white pepper; 1 teaspoon dried oregano; 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes; 1 teaspoon dried thyme; Several dashes of store-bought or homemade hot sauce

User Reviews

4.8

39 reviews

Excellent

Prep Time
1 hr 45 mins
Cook Time
3 hrs 45 mins
Total Time
5 hrs 15 mins
Servings
12 to 16 servings
Calories
908 kcal
Course
Main Course
Cuisine
American

Seafood Gumbo

Iris Warren

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This seafood gumbo, a Cajun specialty, is loaded with shrimp, crab, oysters, and plenty of spice.

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Ingredients

Servings

For the seafood stock

At least 6 cold beers for the cook (kidding...sorta)
4 pounds medium (16 to 20 count) shrimp shell-on and preferably head-on
6 blue crabs
salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small onion coarsely chopped
1 celery stalk coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves
2 teaspoons paprika
One (4-inch) rosemary sprig or 2 tablespoons dried
13 bay leaves
9 quarts (36 cups) cold water

For the seafood gumbo

3 cups vegetable oil
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 large onion
2 medium green bell peppers diced
3 celery stalks diced
2 Jalapeno peppers stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
6 garlic cloves minced
2 tablespoons salt
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons File powder
2 teaspoons store-bought or homemade chili powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Several dashes of store-bought or homemade hot sauce
2 pints shucked oysters liquor strained and reserved
1 pound crab claw meat carefully picked over for shells

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Instructions

Make the seafood stock

Crack open a beer and start sipping while you peel the shrimp. Set the shells and heads aside in a bowl for the stock. Set the bodies aside for the gumbo. (Something to keep in mind for subsequent batches of gumbo is if you desire a richer stock, you can simply double the amount of shrimp shells. To amass this stash of shrimp shells, each time you peel some shrimp for a recipe, stash the shells in the freezer.)
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the crabs and a generous amount of salt, cover, and boil for 5 to 7 minutes. Drain immediately and set the crabs aside to cool. (Yes, after just 5 to 7 minutes. If you were going to fully cook the crabs, you would boil them for 10 to 15 minutes, but you want to leave most of the flavor in the crab so it imparts some to the gumbo.
Peel the front flaps and tops off the crabs and place in a large bowl with the shrimp heads and shells. Use your fingers to scoop out the orange back fat from the middle of the crab and dump it in a small bowl. Break the crab bodies into 4 pieces each and set aside for the gumbo in a different bowl as the shrimp bodies.
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the reserved crab and shrimp shells and shrimp heads, if using. Cook, stirring frequently, until the shells turn pink, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the onion, celery, garlic, paprika, rosemary, bay leaves, and 9 quarts cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and gently simmer for 1 hour.
Remove the stock from the heat and strain, discarding the solids.

Make the seafood gumbo

Heat the 3 cups vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, whisk in the flour and reduce the heat to medium. Cook, whisking slowly but darn near constantly, until the roux has thickened and is the color of a dark copper penny, 45 minutes to an hour. You’ll want to reduce the heat gradually as you go. When the roux first begins to take on color, reduce the heat to medium. Continue in this fashion, gradually lowering the heat as the color of the roux deepens. By the end of the cooking, when the roux is appropriately dark, the heat should be on low. It’s essential to whisk the roux constantly as it cooks (but not so vigorously that you splatter the roux and burn yourself!), because if even a small bit of flour sticks to the pot, it will become spotty, scorch quickly, and impart a burnt taste to the entire roux.
Carefully add the onion, bell pepper, celery, jalapeños, and the reserved crab back fat. (We say "carefully" because this will create a near volcanic reaction of bubbling, steaming, and sizzling. The roux at this point is around 400°F (204°C) and the addition of cold vegetables causes an explosion of flavors and smells.) Stir until the vegetables are well coated.
Stir in the garlic, salt, paprika, filé powder, chili powder, black pepper, cayenne, white pepper, oregano, red pepper flakes, thyme, and hot sauce and continue to cook, stirring, for a few minutes.
Add 2/3 of the strained stock and the oyster liquor, bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring frequently and scraping the bottom of the pot to ensure nothing clumps and burns, until the mixture returns to a gentle simmer.
If necessary, start skimming the oil from the top of the gumbo almost instantly (by the end of the cooking process, the gumbo will probably have released almost all of the oil from the roux). Continue to simmer and skim for about 1 hour. Taste it. If it still has a strong roux flavor, gradually add the remaining 1/3 of the stock, tasting as you go, until the flavor tastes more like the stock than the roux. If you don't use all the stock, freeze the remaining stock for another use.
When the flavor of the gumbo has developed and its appearance is clearer (that is to say, with fewer dots of oil), add the oysters and crab meat. Bring the seafood gumbo back to a simmer and cook gently for 15 to 20 minutes. Skim once more and add the shrimp, and simmer for 1 more hour. Ladle the seafood gumbo into bowls and crack open another beer.

Nutrition Information

Show Details

Serving 1bowl Calories 908kcal (45%) Carbohydrates 37g (12%) Protein 57g (114%) Fat 59g (91%) Saturated Fat 9g (45%) Monounsaturated Fat 13g Trans Fat 0.4g Cholesterol 311mg (104%) Sodium 1956mg (82%) Fiber 2g (8%) Sugar 2g (4%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 12to 16 servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 908 kcal

% Daily Value*

Serving	1bowl
Calories	908kcal	45%
Carbohydrates	37g	12%
Protein	57g	114%
Fat	59g	91%
Saturated Fat	9g	45%
Monounsaturated Fat	13g	65%
Trans Fat	0.4g	20%
Cholesterol	311mg	104%
Sodium	1956mg	82%
Fiber	2g	8%
Sugar	2g	4%