Process essay

Louisiana Gumbo

Real Louisiana Gumbo is made as an event with lots of family involved. As I know it, everyone has a family recipe. Many people have their own way and process on how to make an excellent pot of Gumbo. I don’t know how old the recipe is that had been given to me but I do know that there have been some modifications to it, depending on who is giving the instructions. My first gumbo cooking lesson was given by my mom and her sister; this is when I learned that there were many ways to make Gumbo. However, there is one thing that you must not falter on in the steps of making Gumbo, that’s making the “rue”. The “rue” is a thick gravy-like substance that brings consistency to the stock of the dish. This process gives the Gumbo its unmistakable flavor. From the very first taste and even smell of the ingredients is the tell tale signs of whether it’s a Gumbo or not a Gumbo. Let’s make a Gumbo together now!
First we have to get all the ingredients. There are several types of Gumbo which all include, chicken Gumbo, chicken and sausage Gumbo and seafood Gumbo all types may add fried okra, as well, and rice as a compliment. My favorite is seafood Gumbo. There are many helps out there with making your first Gumbo, Zatarains, Tony Charchieres’, Louisiana Seafood recipes and the Food Network. All Gumbo starts with a few basic instruments and ingredients, starting with a large pot (about 12 qt), a frying skillet and a medium sized pot for the rice. Now we choose the parts of chicken wanted for the Gumbo. Most Gumbos are made with the legs and thighs (a whole chicken may be used) in this recipe we will use legs and thighs. We’ll need some crab legs, shrimp and imitation crab meat for our seafood. For the last meat item we’ll use Louisiana sausage (Hillshire Farms), also take one egg. For our vegetables we will use what chefs’ call the trinity. The trinity is a combination of celery, onion and bell pepper. The next will be some vegetable oil (2 cups), and some flour. I always like to compliment my dish with rice; some of the people I know won’t eat Gumbo without it. For this recipe we’ll use long grain rice, it’s very easy to cook. Lastly, we have to season all the meats. For this, the seasonings used are black pepper, salt, Lawry’s seasoning salt, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, Cajun seasoning, liquid and powdered crab boil (Zatarains).
Now we take all the ingredients and place on the kitchen counter. I like to wash and season all my meats the night before, that way the flavor saturates the meats. Remember to separate the chicken from the other meats, the sausage are fine with the seafood. If you have seasoned your meats beforehand, take out your vegetables. Once you have washed the “trinity”, dice them very small, not to worry about separating them. The next step is to take the large 12qt pot and begin to sear the seasoned chicken but don’t burn it, just sear to bring out the oils in the chicken. The chicken is also the longest to cook and should be thoroughly cooked. After searing the chicken place the “trinity” into the pot, these are also the aromatics you will notice the change of smell when included. Let the “trinity” sweat a little and add water to the pot just above the chicken. At this point turn the fire up on the pot and bring to a boil. After the water begins to boil fill pot about ¾’s full with lukewarm water, cover with lid and reduce heat to a simmer. Making the “rue” is the longest process in making Gumbo and should be done with patience. Take the frying skillet and place it on the stove turn the stove on high. Pour two cups of the vegetable oil in to the frying pan. Let the oil getting very hot like you are about to fry something. After the oil is hot, add in two cups of flour. This part has to be done under a watchful eye because you can’t allow the oil to burn or the “rue” will taste bitter. Start folding the flour into the oil. Be prepared to stand for a while because it will take an hour to complete this process at the least. The “rue” must be folded until it is chocolate and looks almost like a lard. After the “rue” is complete let it stand for about five minutes. They chicken has now been simmering and the rest of the ingredients can be added to the pot. I recommend adding the “rue” first and then adding the seafood. The seafood doesn’t take long to cook and should be done in about eight minutes. Now take the egg that was a part the ingredients crack it open and add it to the Gumbo. When the egg is done the Gumbo should be done as well, turn the fire off and let stand. Gumbo eaters say that the longer the pot sits the flavor melds together and taste much better over time.
Last of all we make the rice. Take the medium sized pot and fill with water, add two cups of rice and wash rice over a running faucet. After washing the rice fill the pot to a 1/2in above the rice with water and cover with lid. Bring the water to a boil for about twenty minutes, and then reduce heat to simmer for ten minutes. After ten minutes turn off heat and let rice stand for ten minutes before serving, the rice will have the proper stiffness for the juice of the Gumbo. Let’s eat! Now this is how it’s done, where I come from. Enjoy!