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For other uses, see Gumbo (disambiguation).
Gumbo
A bowl of shrimp gumbo.
Place of originUnited States
Region or stateLouisiana
Main ingredientsStock
Okra
Meat and/or Shellfish
Celery
Bell Peppers
Onion
Rice
VariationsMultiple

Gumbo is a stew or soup which originated in south Louisiana. It consists primarily of a strong stock, meat or shellfish, a thickener, and the vegetable "holy trinity" of celery, bell peppers, and onion. Gumbo is often categorized by the type of thickener used: the African vegetable okra, the Choctaw spice filé powder, or the French base made of flour and fat, roux. The dish likely derived its name from the native word for either okra (ki ngombo) or filé (kombo).

Two main varieties of gumbo exist. Creole gumbo generally contains shellfish, tomatoes, and a thickener. Cajun gumbo is generally based on a dark roux and is spicier, with either shellfish or fowl. Sausage or ham can be added to a gumbo made with either fowl or shellfish. After the base is prepared, vegetables are cooked down, and then meat is added. The dish boils for a minimum of three hours, with shellfish and some spices added near the end. After the pot is removed from heat, filé powder can be added. Gumbo is traditionally served over rice. A third variety, the meatless gumbo z'herbes is essentially a gumbo of slow-cooked greens sometimes thickened with roux.

Gumbo originated in Louisiana in the 18th century and combines ingredients and culinary practices of several cultures, including French, Spanish, West African, and Choctaw. The dish may have been based on traditional West African or native dishes, or may be a derivation of the French dish bouillabaisse. It was first described in 1802 and was listed in various cookbooks in the latter half of the 19th century. The dish gained more widespread popularity in the 1970s, after the United States Senate cafeteria added it to the menu in honor of Senator Allen Ellender. Chef Paul Prudhomme's popularity in the 1980s spurred further interest in gumbo.


Variations

Gumbo is a heavily seasoned soup or stew that combines several varieties of meat or seafood with a sauce or gravy.[1] The authors of Stir the Pot: The History of Cajun Cuisine maintain that "gumbo is a veritable art form in Louisiana. There are as many gumbo recipes as there are cooks."[2] In theory, any combination of meat or seafood can be used, but in practice oysters are generally the only seafood used in a meat-based gumbo, and sausage and ham are the only meats used in a seafood-based gumbo.[3] A seafood-based gumbo generally has shrimp, oysters, and crabmeat, while a meat-based gumbo may consist of chicken, duck, squirrel or rabbit. Beef and pork are almost never used, with the exception of sausage and ham.[3] Sausage, primarily andouille,[3] is added to provide "piquancy, substance, and an additional layer of flavor" to the dish.[2] Most varieties of gumbo are seasoned with onions, parsley, and bell pepper, and sometimes with celery.[3] Tomatoes are sometimes used in seafood gumbo, but traditionally few other vegetables are used.[3]

Thickeners

Okra

There are three primary thickeners used to make the gumbo sauce: okra, filé powder, and roux. Okra is more likely to be used as a thickener in seafood gumbos rather than those with meat.[3] This mucilaginous vegetable is usually cooked first, before other vegetables and meats or seafood are added.[4] According to The Oxford Companion to Food, the texture of okra is not as appreciated as it once was, and for this reason okra-based gumbos are becoming less popular.[5]

Filé, which is made from ground sassafras leaf, is generally not added to the sauce until after the vegetables and meats or seafood have finished cooking and been removed from the heat source. If added during the boiling process, filé makes the gumbo too ropey;[4] when added at the end, the gumbo gains a slightly stringy texture.[5] Roux, which is a roughly equal proportion of cooked flour and fat, has become the most popular thickener.[5] The traditional fat for gumbo roux, hog lard, was largely replaced in the latter half of the 20th century with vegetable oil.[6] In a roux-based gumbo, flavor and texture are dependent on how long the roux is cooked. The longer the cooking process, the darker the roux. A very dark roux provides a much thinner sauce that has a more intense flavor than a light roux.[6] Traditionally, okra and filé powder are not used at the same time, although this rule is sometimes broken.[7] Roux can be used alone or in conjunction with either of the other thickeners.[8][9]

Creole vs Cajun

Gumbo is typically divided into either "Creole" or "Cajun" varieties.[7] Creole refers to the combinations that were traditionally common in New Orleans and southeastern Louisiana. In these areas, significant portions of the population were descendants of settlers from France or Spain, and were known as Creoles. The Cajun combinations were often found in Southwestern Louisiana, which was populated primarily by Cajuns, descendants of the French-speaking settlers who were expelled from Acadia in the mid-18th century.[10]

Cajun seafood gumbo

Creole gumbo most often consists of seafood, tomatoes, and a thickener.[7] This variety is generally not as spicy as Cajun gumbo, as cayenne pepper is used much more sparingly.[8] Before the latter half of the 20th century, celery was rarely used in Creole gumbo, but it is now much more common.[6]

Cajun gumbo is usually identified by its dark roux,[8] cooked until it is a color "a few shades from burning".[6] The roux is used with either okra or filé powder.[8] Seafood is popular in Cajun gumbo, but the southwestern areas of the state often use fowl, such as chicken or duck, and sausage.[8][9] The fowl is generally not deboned, and onions, celery, and bell pepper are not strained out of the dish.[8] Cajun gumbo is usually topped with parsley and green onions.[8]

Gumbo z'herbes

During Lent, when Catholics were traditionally expected to abstain from meat, a different type of gumbo was often served. Known as gumbo z'herbes (literally "gumbo with herbs"), this variety combined a large number of greens – typically including turnips, mustard greens, and spinach.[4] The greens were cooked to mush and strained through a sieve to produce a thick green liquid.[4] This variety of gumbo was time-consuming, and as Lenten restrictions have relaxed the dish has become less popular.[4] It is very rarely served in restaurants.[11] Occasionally, ham or crabmeat is now added to this type of gumbo.[2]

Gumbo z'herbes may have originated with the French, Germans, or West Africans.[12] It has similarities to the French dish potage aux herbes as well as to the African callaloo.[12] The meatless dish also bears striking resemblance to a dish often eaten in Germany on Maundy Thursday. German Catholics, obeying the Lenten rules, often served a stew made of seven different greens on this date.[11]

History

Background

Gumbo is often used as a metaphor for the mix of cultures that exist in southern Louisiana.[13] Nobles believes the "dish personifies the word 'Creole'; like its human counterparts, gumbo was born in the New World and took cues from the old but adapted to the new".[13] The dish combines the culinary practices of native tribes, African slaves, and settlers descended from the French, and the Spanish . In the 18th century, people from these cultures lived together within a fairly small geography with minimal mobility. This fostered an environment where cultures could influence each other and meld to create new traditions and cuisine.[14] According to historian Gwendolyn Midlo Hall, residents of 18th century Louisiana "participated in an acculturation process that was a mutual exchange of knowledge, perceptions, and techniques – an exchange in which Africans, as well as Indians, were often more influential than whites".[15]

The French claimed Louisiana as a colony in the late 17th century.[16] Colonization efforts did not begin in earnest until 1718, the year New Orleans was founded.[17] French settlers allied with various native tribes, including the Choctaw, Alabama, and Cherokee.[18][19] From the native peoples, settlers learned new methods of cooking and to identify edible indigenous plants.[20] The first African slaves arrived in Louisiana in 1719. The first slave ships brought rice seed and men who were experienced in its cultivation.[21] Within a few years, rice was commonly grown along the Mississippi River.[11] In 1721, 125 Germans settled 40 miles (64 km) from New Orleans. This community introduced the art of making sausage.[22] By 1746, the white population of Louisiana was estimated to be 3,200, with an estimated 4,730 black people. Slaves outnumbered whites in most areas of Louisiana for at least the next 40 years.[23][24]

The Louisiana colony was transferred from French to Spanish control in 1762.[11] The Spanish government actively recruited settlers for the colony.[25] Approximately 2,000 people arrived from the Canary Islands to live south of New Orleans.[26][27] These settlers were primarily fishermen, who soon began supplying large amounts of shrimp, crab, and oysters to the food markets in New Orleans. The Canary Islanders also brought "a love for well-seasoned food"[28] and the spicy seasoning ground cayenne pepper.[27] Spanish authorities also granted permission for a large number of French-speaking Acadian exiles to relocate to Louisiana. From 1755 through 1795, almost 3,000 of these settlers, soon known as Cajuns, moved to the areas south and west of New Orleans.[28] By 1800, most Cajun families in Louisiana had purchased slaves. The new laborers introduced new foods, including the African vegetable okra,[29] and hot pepper plants, which were traced to Haiti.[30] Onion and bell pepper were long part of cooking in the Spanish and African traditions.[19] Louisiana became a United States state in 1812. Shortly thereafter, tomatoes were introduced to the region.[31]

Origin

The dish originated in Louisiana in the early 18th century,[13] but its uncertain etymology makes it difficult to pinpoint the exact origins of the food.[32] Although no conclusive evidence exists, cultural markers indicate several potential scenarios.[19]

According to one theory, gumbo is a reinterpretation of traditional African cooking. West Africans used the vegetable okra as a base for many dishes, including soups. They often paired okra with meat and shrimp and seasoned with salt and pepper. In Louisiana, the dish was modified to include ingredients introduced by other cultural groups.[19] By 1764, African slaves in New Orleans mixed cooked okra with rice to make a meal.[11]

Another theory has gumbo as a derivation of traditional French soups, particularly the French dish bouillabaisse.[1][33] During the cold winters, Acadians generally cooked soups,[14] using whatever ingredients were readily available.[30] When the Acadians moved to Louisians in the mid-18th century, they were unable to find many of their traditional ingredients, including turnips and cabbage.[14] In this scenario, Acadian colonists substituted local ingredients for those commonly included in the fish stew. Instead of the original fish, settlers used shellfish. The dish was later modified to include ingredients common in other cultures.[1]

Some culinary experts in the early 20th century, including Celestine Eustis, maintained that gumbo was an early special occasion dish for native tribes.[33] This is further implied by a late 18th century Cajun practice. At that time, rice was a luxury for many Cajuns. They instead served gumbo over corn grits, a pairing common in the stews of native tribes. This, and the use of filé powder, may imply that the dish was derived from native cuisine.[11]

These theories are intermixed in the local legend of the Frying Pan Revolt, or Petticoat Insurrection. According to legend, in 1722 female French colonists gathered in New Orleans at the home of Governor Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville, to protest the lack of familiar ingredients. Bienville's housekeeper, Madame Langlois, taught the women how to improve the basic gumbo, using okra, which they had learned from their slaves. Langlois introduced ingredients common in Choctaw cuisine – rice, shrimp, crawfish, and filé powder.[33]

Development

Gumbo z'herbes, served with filé powder and hot sauce

The first written references to gumbo appear in the early 19th century. In 1802, Dr. John Sibley described "the dish they call gumbo which is made principally of the ochre into a thick kind of soop [sic] & eat with rice, it is the food of every body for dinner and supper."[34] The following year, French governor Pierre Clement de Laussat hosted a soiree in which 24 different gumbos were documented. According to author Cynthia Lejeune Nobles, these two events "give clues to gumbo's Spanish colonial popularity and illustrate that the dish could be both humble and refined."[27]

An 1824 cookbook, Mary Randolph's The Virginia House-Wife, was the first to include a recipe for gumbo. Called "Gumbo - A West India Dish", the simple recipe described how to boil okra and bore little resemblance to the stew commonly known as gumbo. The same book contained a recipe for "Ochra Soup" made with okra, onions, fowl, bacon, tomatoes, and lima beans thickened with flour. Although this was closer to gumbo, it more closely resembled the Caribbean dish callaloo.[35]

A more familiar version of the dish was described in an 1879 cookbook by Marion Cabell Tyree. Her Housekeeping in Old Virginia described "Gumbo Filit A La Creole", a filé-based gumbo with chicken and oysters and spiced with allspice, cloves, red and black pepper, parsley, and thyme.[35] The 1881 cookbook What Mrs. Fisher Knows About Old Southern Cooking, dictated by former slave Abby Fisher, contained three gumbo recipes. "Oyster Gumbo Soup" used a filé base, while "Ochra Gumbo" and "Chicken Gumbo" used okra as a base.[35] The 1885 cookbook La Cuisine Creole documented eight varieties of gumbo. None used sausage, but almost all of them contained ham.[28]

Until the 1970s, gumbo was primarily popular on the Gulf Coast of the United States. It gained a broader profile after the death of Senator Allen Ellender. Ellender, a native of Terrebonne Parish, had often cooked gumbo for his colleagues, including five American presidents. After Ellender died in 1972, the Senate directed that their cafeteria add Louisiana Creole Gumbo, made with seafood, to its menu in his honor. The dish became more widely popular in the 1980s, when Chef Paul Prudhomme's popularity spurred interest in Creole and Cajun cooking.[36]

Preparation and serving

Creole seafood gumbo

Gumbo takes a minimum of three hours to cook, and is often simmered all day. When preparing gumbo, the okra and/or roux are cooked first. Occasionally, meat (never seafood) is browned beforehand or in the same pot as the okra, and then removed from the heat. Okra is removed from heat when it reaches the appropriate consistency, while roux remains in the pot. Seasoning vegetables are then added to the sauce and cooked down. The meat and okra are then added to the pot along with water and/or stock and boiled uncovered until the desired tenderness of the meat is reached.[4] Seasonings, including red, black, and white pepper, bay leaves, thyme, hot sauce, and salt, are added to taste.[10] According to author Cynthia Lejeune Nobles, "proper seasoning of gumbo is essential, and in Louisiana adding just the right zing is considered an art."[30] Because seafood cooks fairly quickly, it is not added to the pot until the end of the process. As the gumbo finishes cooking, green onions and parsley may be sprinkled on it. If desired, filé powder is added last.[4]

Creole and Cajun gumbos are served over hot rice,[19] a practice that helps the dish to feed a larger number of people.[3] Gumbo z'herbes is served with rice on the side.[4] Gumbo is almost always served directly from the pot on the stove, although in wealthier or fancier homes the dish might be transferred to a tureen on the table.[37] Often, gumbo and bread are the sole courses in a meal,[1] although many Cajun families provide a side dish of potato salad.[8] Occasionally it can be served as part of a larger menu.[1]

Social aspects

In Cajun Foodways, C. Paige Gutierrez describes gumbo as "an economical dish" useful for "feed[ing] a large number of people with a small amount of meat or seafood".[3] Nobles concurs that "one of the hallmarks of gumbo is that, with a big enough pot, it can easily be doubled or tripled and is always a good choice to feed a crowd".[31] With this dish, cooks can use up small portions of various ingredients that were not sufficient for an individual meal. Before refrigeration, the dish was also an efficient way to finish leftover perishable meats and seafood.[3]

Since the 19th century, gumbo has often featured at social gatherings or other special occasions.[2][29] At local fais do-do (dance parties), gumbo was available beginning at midnight.[31] Many families "have a gumbo", or host a casual social gathering where friends and family chat and enjoy alcoholic beverages and gumbo.[2] In rural Acadiana, gumbo is a central feature of Mardi Gras celebrations. On Mardi Gras, local men wander from house to house and beg for gumbo ingredients in an event known as courir de Mardi Gras.[31] Members of the local community then gather in a central location while the men cook the gumbo. When it is ready, the group eats and dances until midnight, when Lent begins.[35]

Gumbo is the official cuisine of the state of Louisiana.[13] Many southern Louisiana cooking competitions center around gumbo,[2] and it is a central feature of many local festivals.[38] The self-described "Gumbo Capital of the World", Bridge City, Louisiana, holds an annual Gumbo Festival.[39] The festival features gumbo cooked in a cast-iron pot which is 3 feet (0.91 m) deep and 5 feet (1.5 m) in diameter. More commonly, festival gumbo pots measure 2 feet (0.61 m) in depth and diameter.[38]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Gutierrez (1992), p. 54.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Bienvenue et al (2005), p. 135.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Gutierrez (1992), p. 56.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Gutierrez (1992), p. 57.
  5. ^ a b c Davidson (2006), p. 126.
  6. ^ a b c d Nobles (2009), p. 113.
  7. ^ a b c Nobles (2009), p. 107.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Nobles (2009), p. 111.
  9. ^ a b Gutierrez (1992), pp. 55–56.
  10. ^ a b Broussard-Marin, Lydia; Hynak-Hankinson, Mary Therese (August 1989), "Ethnic food: the use of Cajune cuisine as a model" (PDF), Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 89 (8)
  11. ^ a b c d e f Nobles (2009), p. 110. Cite error: The named reference "nobles100" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  12. ^ a b Nobles (2009), p. 109.
  13. ^ a b c d Nobles (2009), p. 98.
  14. ^ a b c Brasseaux (1987), p. 134.
  15. ^ Hall (1992), p. 238.
  16. ^ Hall (1992), p. 3.
  17. ^ Hall (1992), p. 159.
  18. ^ Hall (1992), p. 19.
  19. ^ a b c d e Bienvenue et al (2005), p. 134.
  20. ^ Hall (1992), p. 14.
  21. ^ Hall (1992), p. 10.
  22. ^ Nobles (2009), p. 101.
  23. ^ Hall (1992), p. 9.
  24. ^ Hall (1992), p. 278.
  25. ^ Hall (1992), p. 266.
  26. ^ Hall (1992), p. 277.
  27. ^ a b c Nobles (2009), p. 104.
  28. ^ a b c Nobles (2009), p. 102.
  29. ^ a b Brasseaux (1987), p. 135.
  30. ^ a b c Nobles (2009), p. 103.
  31. ^ a b c d Nobles (2009), p. 105.
  32. ^ Usner (2000), p. 46.
  33. ^ a b c Nobles (2009), p. 99.
  34. ^ quoted in Nobles (2009), p. 104.
  35. ^ a b c d Nobles (2009), p. 106.
  36. ^ Nobles (2009), p. 114.
  37. ^ Nobles (2009), p. 112.
  38. ^ a b Guttierez (1992), p. 114.
  39. ^ Theriot (2009), p. 34.

Sources

  • Bienvenue, Marcelle; Brasseaux, Carl A.; Brasseaux, Ryan A. (2005), Stir the Pot: The History of Cajun Cuisine, Hippocrene Books, ISBN 9780781811200
  • Brasseaux, Carl A. (1987), The Founding of New Acadia, Louisiana State University Press, ISBN 9780807120996
  • Davidson, Alan; Jaine, Tom, eds. (2006), The Oxford Companion to Food, Oxford University Press, ISBN 9780192806819
  • Gutierrez, C. Paige (1992), Cajun Foodways, University Press of Mississippi, ISBN 978087055630 {{citation}}: Check |isbn= value: length (help)
  • Hall, Gwendolyn Midlo (1992), Africans in Colonial Louisiana: The Development of Afro-Creole Culture in the Eighteenth Century, Louisiana State University Press, ISBN 9780807119990
  • Nobles, Cynthia Lejeune (2009), "Gumbo", in Tucker, Susan; Starr, S. Frederick (eds.), New Orleans Cuisine: Fourteen Signature Dishes and Their Histories, University Press of Mississippi, ISBN 9781604731279
  • Usner, Daniel H. Jr. (2000), "The Facility Offered by the Country: The Creolization of Agriculture in the Lower Mississippi Valley", in Buisseret, David; Reinhardt, Steven G. (eds.), Creolization in the Americas, Walter Prescott Webb Memorial Lectures, Texas A&M University Press, ISBN 9781585441013

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