Seafood & Andouille Gumbo

There are a number of steps and ingredients in this dish that when used correctly, build so much depth and flavor.

1. Stock/Broth: For starters, having flavorful stocks/broths are an immediate way to make a better soup or stew. You can certainly buy boxed broths. However, if you make stock from scratch, don’t skimp on flavor. Shrimp heads and roasted chicken skin are where the most concentrated flavors are located. Do not throw them out if you can avoid it; freeze them if you can’t use them immediately.

If you cannot find shrimp with the heads still attached, you will need to at least double the shrimp tails to get a similar flavor, but it can be done. Uncooked chicken can be used for a homemade stock, but it won’t be as flavorful. Make a roast chicken or even buy a fresh rotisserie chicken and then use those leftovers for your soup base. Honestly, WORLDS of difference.

Did you know?: Stock is traditionally made from just bones and broth is made from meat/skin. Purchase accordingly if you are using store bought. My stocks are a hybrid because no way am I just boiling bones.

2. Umami bombs: Miso paste, anchovy, and garlic all add the savory/bright elements to this gumbo, that we lovingly call umami, so that it doesn’t hit your palette flat. Adding them after sweating out the mirepoix but before adding in any straight liquids allows them to permeate the oil in the roux better than if you added them later. (Same goes for the spices.)

3. Toasty things: The very deep toasted flavor that permeates this stew comes from two places. The dark “chocolate colored” roux and the ale. The work you did to toast the flour in oil and then simmer the stew until the flour flavor cooks out, only means one thing. Just the toasty flavor remains. Yum! In addition the bready yeast flavor with slight malt from the ale, gives this stew an added deepening element. Also, if you are nervous, alcohol fully cooks out of a simmering stew in 3 hours.

4. The Maillard reaction: Sauteéing the sausage and the okra, even allowing them to char a bit, layers flavor. Consider, for those of you who have eaten hot dogs, how different a boiled versus grilled hot dog tastes.

5. Adding alcohol: I picked up this trick from J. Kenji López-Alt and his short rib chili recipe. When alcohol evaporates it traps more aroma than regular steam making our food taste that much better. (This is 100% optional)

Did you know?: Even though our taste buds deliver more intense flavor than our olfactory receptors, aroma actually delivers 80% of what we perceive as flavor.

Traditionally, the roux, the okra, and the filé thicken a gumbo. Roux is always used, but sometimes okra and filé are not. I do use all three in this recipe. However, I cook off most of the thickener in the okra in favor of their browned flavor. I have never regretted this decision and find the gumbo plenty thick for my tastes.

A roux is equal parts, by weight, fat to flour. To convert, 1 cup or 240ml (both volume) of oil weighs roughly 215 grams so I used 1 1/2 cups of flour (volume again) which weighs about 205g. Because of the high heat used for making dark roux, make sure to use an oil that has a high smoke point. Canola oil, vegetable oil, peanut oil, and grapeseed oil are all great options.

If you decide you want to have okra be a part of the thickening party, simply add the uncooked slices at the same point as the cooked ones in the recipe. Sauté for just a bit (until they soften and get slimy) and then add in the beer and the stocks as written. (If you are looking to lessen the amount of roux for dietary purposes, I would suggest halving the roux and using okra in this way, instead of as written in the recipe.)

finally, the filé must be added at the end for the most and best impact to texture. If you add it while the stew is still boiling it can impart a stringy texture. If that happens, not to worry, just keep cooking the gumbo down. Of note, the more you cook the filé the less it works and flavors the gumbo, so you’ll lose the the raw vegetal flavor it imparts when you don’t cook it as well as the glossy thickening action. It tastes actually quite nice, like thyme and tea leaves with a hint of citrus.

You may see some recipes start the dark roux from a cold or just warm pan and then increase the temperature little-by-little. I’ve not had great results from this, mainly because it takes forever and I am impatient but also because there is a longer window for me to mess things up. Oh wait those are the same thing! 😛

I prefer to start the oil hot and have it immediately begin toasting the flour. Seriously, within 15 minutes you will go from a white roux (completely uncooked) to a deep chocolate brown color. You’ll know the roux is burned if you see black flecks or chunks that are much darker than the rest of the roux and it has taken on a bitter, acrid smell. But, how much better would you feel about starting over on something that takes 15 minutes as opposed to 1+ hours.

I do recommend, using an enameled dutch oven as it holds heat better and won’t have hot spots to scorch your roux like a metal stock pot might. If you are using metal, I suggest keeping everything at medium high to be on the safe side. I also recommend using a wooden spatula. Utensils encased in silicone or with many parts, like a whisk, can volatilely affect the surface of the roux, which means spatter. And, let me tell you, oil this hot immediately blisters on impact. No thanks!

Since you will surely have different sizes of shrimp in your batch let me just give you visuals to look out for.

1. The shrimp should turn pink/orange in color fro their uncooked gray. I know an easy one.
2. They should also never be cooked past a gently curled “C” shape. Once they curl tightly against themselves they are the texture of rubber. Don’t let it get that far.
3. Finally, even if you only put the shrimp in at the very end, that stew is hot. They will over cook in a matter of minutes. Cook them and then set them aside to be added back in at serving.

This is extremely helpful when reheating leftovers, as they can be brought to temperature in the already hot stew and not overcooked in the microwave or on the stove during the process.

Easy answer, to cook out the flour flavor. Do me a huge favor and do try the gumbo before and after it simmers for a few hours. You will be AMAZED at the difference!

You can store gumbo in an airtight container, in the refrigerator, for up to 4 days. I do not recommend adding the shrimp into the gumbo before freezing as they will overcook when you reheat the stew. Just sauté up some fresh shrimp for that meal or go without them.

The gumbo will keep for up to 4 months in the freezer. Defrost frozen gumbo on the stovetop in a lidded soup pot or larger saucepan on low. Freezing will already have softened the cell walls of any vegetables in your gumbo. Reheating in a microwave tends to dissolve vegetables even more because of its rapid heating and such an immediate change in state.