Best Boones Jamaican Gumbo Recipes

GOOD NEW ORLEANS CREOLE GUMBO

Steps:

• Make a roux by whisking the flour and 3/4 cup bacon drippings together in a large, heavy saucepan over medium-low heat to form a smooth mixture. Cook the roux, whisking constantly, until it turns a rich mahogany brown color. This can take 20 to 30 minutes; watch heat carefully and whisk constantly or roux will burn. Remove from heat; continue whisking until mixture stops cooking.
• Place the celery, onion, green bell pepper, and garlic into the work bowl of a food processor, and pulse until the vegetables are very finely chopped. Stir the vegetables into the roux, and mix in the sausage. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-low heat, and cook until vegetables are tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside.
• Bring the water and beef bouillon cubes to a boil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot. Stir until the bouillon cubes dissolve, and whisk the roux mixture into the boiling water. Reduce heat to a simmer, and mix in the sugar, salt, hot pepper sauce, Cajun seasoning, bay leaves, thyme, stewed tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Simmer the soup over low heat for 1 hour; mix in 2 teaspoons of file gumbo powder at the 45-minute mark.
• Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings in a skillet, and cook the okra with vinegar over medium heat for 15 minutes; remove okra with slotted spoon, and stir into the simmering gumbo. Mix in crabmeat, shrimp, and Worcestershire sauce, and simmer until flavors have blended, 45 more minutes. Just before serving, stir in 2 more teaspoons of file gumbo powder.

JUSTIN WILSON'S GUMBO

Steps:

• "Firs', you gotta make-a-roux, you know dat".
• In a cast iron dutch oven, combine oil and flour on MED heat. Stir the mixture constantly and slowly until it browns.
• "You cook dat til you tink, dat's gonna burn, but dat's not what it did, see y'gots to cook dat til it's like Dutch chocolate, y'see?".
• When the roux reaches it's proper, aforementioned color, you add the onion. Once that onion has cooked clear looking, add your garlic, and whisk in 4 cups of water.
• Next you stir in the worcestershire and hot sauce, and add your andouille sausage.
• Now it's time to add your chicken. "I put the pieces I like most of all, which is all the shicken, and the part what go over de fence last, I like dat.".
• Add your 4 cups of Sauterne wine, and 2.5 teaspoons of salt. Stir all this together and your gumbo is completed,.
• except for the cooking.
• " What you did with dis, now you cook dis today, an don' serve it today, no. You put it in you icebox tonight, an tomorrow, bring it to a boil an let it simmer for about an hour, an den eat dat, cause it taste more batter den, hoooo, it always does.".
• Whether you can wait until the next day or not, cook it a long time until the chicken is ready to fall off the bone.
• Serve it with hot cooked rice and offer ï¬�le powder to you guests.

SEAFOOD GUMBO

Steps:

• Make the spice mix: Place all ingredients in a bowl and stir until combined. Set aside 2 tablespoons to add to the gumbo and reserve the rest for another use in an airtight container.
• Make the gumbo: In a heavy 4- to 5-quart pot, heat the butter and oil over medium heat. Once the butter begins to bubble slightly, add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula to form a smooth paste.
• Cook the mixture, stirring continuously, for 10 to 13 minutes to make a chocolate-colored roux. Make sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the pot to avoid burning. It is important to keep a very close eye on the roux during this step. The roux can go from a nutty color and aroma to burnt beyond repair in a matter of minutes. Lower the heat as needed.
• Immediately add the onion, garlic, celery, bell pepper and tomatoes and stir well. The vegetables will stop the roux from overcooking and burning. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to stick to the pan, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the dried shrimp, if using, tomato paste and 2 tablespoons spice mix and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes.
• While whisking, slowly add the stock and whisk until the stock is completely blended with the roux and vegetable mixture. Add the okra, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce and let simmer for 50 minutes over very low heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. Add the lobster, crab, scallops and shrimp and simmer just until cooked through, about 10 minutes more.
• Season the gumbo to taste with salt and pepper and serve over rice.

ULTIMATE GULF COAST GUMBO

Steps:

• Peel and devein the shrimp and place in the refrigerator. Place shrimp heads and shells in a large pot, and cover with 2 quarts of water. Cover, and simmer over medium-low heat until liquid is reduced by half. Strain out and discard shrimp heads and shells. Reserve shrimp broth.
• Heat oil in a very large stockpot over medium-high heat. Stir in flour with a long-handled spoon. Cook and stir for several minutes until dark brown and flour is puffing and absorbing the oil. Slowly stir in chicken broth and an equal amount of water. Place chicken in the pot. Add onions, celery, bell pepper, tomatoes, garlic, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, Old Bay seasoning, and salt. Boil until chicken is no longer pink and the juices run clear, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Remove chicken from the pot, and set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove and discard bones, and chop chicken into 1 inch pieces.
• Return chicken back to the pot, along with reserved shrimp broth, crab meat, sausage, and shrimp. Add the file powder, and stir from the bottom of the pot. When the gumbo comes to a boil, remove from heat. Continue to stir from the bottom for 1 minute. Serve.

VALERIE'S VERY BEST GUMBO

Steps:

• Warm 1 cup oil over medium heat in a large Dutch oven until hot. Add the flour to the pot all at once, whisking until the consistency is uniform. Cook the roux, whisking occasionally, until it is the color of a tarnished penny, about 20 minutes. Do not let it darken any further. Carefully add the celery, bell peppers, onion, chopped scallions and garlic to the pot, working away from you as the hot roux may spatter. Stir with a wooden spoon until the onions begin to soften, about 5 minutes.
• Add enough stock to just cover the vegetables, about 1 quart, and stir to combine. The roux may separate. Add the tomatoes with their juices, andouille and smoked sausages, cayenne, bay leaves, 1 1/2 tablespoons salt, 1 tablespoon black pepper and the remaining stock, about 1 more quart. Partially cover and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a medium skillet over high heat. Add the okra and cook, stirring, until the gel dries out slightly, about 3 minutes. Add to the Dutch oven.
• Taste the gumbo for seasoning and adjust as desired. Add the chicken, cook until warmed through and serve, or simmer up to 2 hours more to concentrate the flavors, adding the chicken 20 minutes before serving.
• Sprinkle with the reserved sliced scallions and serve over rice. Serve with hot sauce and file powder if using.