Crawfish Gumbo

Here is a Gumbo that I did not grow up eating. In fact, I know my mother never made one. And my Maw Maws never served one to me. The first time I had this gumbo was when I lived in Central Texas. There was a Cajun restaurant we would go to for a little taste of home. We would get a shrimp po-boy and a cup of gumbo. One of the gumbos they served was Crawfish Gumbo. Honestly that was the first time I ever heard of it. It was rich and delivered that rich gumbo flavor I was missing. 

Well dear sister has been asking for a gumbo and I kept saying when it is a little cooler. I told her I was thinking about trying to make a Crawfish Gumbo and she was not thrilled with the idea. Since that conversation I have had both crawfish and gumbo on my mind. So I bought some frozen crawfish tails in wait for the temperature to drop. Well it has been cooler now for three days. With dear sister out of town I thought I would try my Crawfish Gumbo experiment and put my mind to rest.

It was actually a pretty easy gumbo to put together I was able to cook it Thursday evening. I did add some things I don't normally put in my gumbos; rotel, garlic and bay leaf. I thought they would work well with the crawfish. I like the spicy flavor of boiled crawfish and wanted it in my gumbo. I also waited to the end to add the crawfish tails because I did not wanted them to get tough. Well although this turned out to be a great rich pot of Gumbo, I have to say I was a bit disappointed in the crawfish department. I think I will try this one more time in the spring when crawfish are in season. I want to be able to make a stock with the shells. The crawfish was second fiddle to the roux in this pot. I think adding a crawfish stock will boost the crawfish flavor. Or maybe I am a purest and just like my crawfish boiled? No, I love Crawfish Bisque and Crawfish Etouffee. I think this recipe just needs to be re-visited in the spring.

Crawfish Gumbo

Serves 8 to 10

Ingredients

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 large onion, small dice

1/2 green bell pepper, small dice

3 ribs of celery, small dice

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 lb. Andouille sausage, sliced into half moons

10 oz. can rotel tomatoes, undrained

1 bay leaf

Kosher salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes and creole seasoning to taste

2 lbs. crawfish tails, peeled

1/2 bunch of parsley, finely chopped

1 bunch green onions, sliced

2 cups rice, uncooked

Directions

Prepare rice to package directions. Dice all vegetables and set aside.

To prepare the roux place flour and oil in a large heavy pot. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon over medium -high heat until roux is the color of dark caramel to milk chocolate. When roux is the correct color add onion, bell pepper and celery. Season the roux with salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes and creole seasoning. Stir occasionally to make sure it does not stick. You can cover pot in between stirs. You are looking for the veggies to be soft and create liquid in the roux. When veggies are soft add the Andouille sausage. Cook until sausage appears cooked. Add the rotel tomatoes and bay leaf stir to combine. Slowly add two quarts of warm water stirring as you go. When all the water has been incorporated bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and simmer for 1 hour. Next add the crawfish and simmer for 30 minutes. Add green onions and parsley. Check seasonings and add to taste. Serve over cooked rice in large soup bowls. Garnish with more green onion, parsley and file (optional).

To see photos of preparing a Roux, check out this previous post:

Chicken and Andouille Gumbo

Craving more Gumbo, check out these previous pots:

Gumbo Vert

Seafood Gumbo with Whole Crabs

Turkey Gumbo

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Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo
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Carole's Chatter: Food on Fridays - Crayfish, Lobster & Crab