Shrimp and Sausage Gumbo

I want to ask gumbo where it’s been all my life.

There is nothing that can warm your belly better than this thick, spicy stew punctuated by curls of gulf shrimp and bits of smoked sausage.

And okra – why have I been missing out on the okra? I guess if okra freaks you out (it does look a little foreign if you’re a Northerner, like me), you could leave it out, but I’d advise against it. Your gumbo won’t be the same.

This is based on a recipe from my favorite new cookbook, Sunday Soup. I love soup, and I’d been wanting a copy of this cookbook since early last fall, when I saw it at Art of the Table in Easttown. My mom thoughtfully ordered me a copy for Christmas, and I’ve been taking it rather seriously and making a pot of soup every weekend. There is a recipe for every week of the year, all based on seasonal ingredients, so I should have tested them all by next Christmas, barring any distractions.

The recipe for Gulf Coast Shrimp Gumbo immediately caught my eye, but I didn’t believe the one hour time claim (the book seems to think “prep time” excludes any time spent chopping vegetables or similar), so I implemented a few shortcuts, which have made their way into my version of the gumbo.

I used pre-cooked organic turkey smoked sausage instead of the traditional andouille (although I like andouille and you can certainly use it – look for it at your local butcher or supermarket meat counter, ss it’s hard to find pre-packaged), so I didn’t need to spend time cooking sausage. I also used frozen pre-cooked, peeled, and de-veined shrimp – I simply had to pull off the tails and toss them into the pot. I switched out some of the fresh herbs for dried, since it’s hard to find really fresh herbs in winter here, and for a reasonable price. All told, it took me an hour from start to finish.

If you want, you could probably toss everything into your crock pot in the morning, including uncooked rice, and come home to an equally delicious slow-cooker version.

I served this over brown rice, but you could easily toss the cooked rice right into the pot. It’s up to you.

Shrimp and Sausage Gumbo

8 tablespoons canola oil
4 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 medium onion, chopped
3-4 stalks celery, halved lengthwise and chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon dried parsley
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon kosher or fine grain sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 cups (1 quart) chicken stock (I used my own homemade turkey stock, though)
28 ounces diced tomatoes, drained
12 ounces okra, the ends removed, cut into 1/4-inch rounds
1 pound organic smoked sausage (pork or turkey), quartered lengthwise and cut into small pieces
1 pound frozen pre-cooked, peeled, de-veined shrimp, thawed, with tails removed
4 cups cooked brown rice (I have an electric steamer, and started my rice before I did anything else, as brown rice takes about an hour, no matter how you do it), cooked according to package directions

In a large, heavy skillet (I used cast iron), make a roux of oil and flour. Heat 4 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. When hot, add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture turns a deep, toasty brown color, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a large, heavy soup pot or Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrot, and bell pepper, and saute until the vegetables begin to get tender. Add the garlic and continue to cook, stirring constantly, for another minute or two. Stir in the cayenne pepper, thyme, kosher salt, and black pepper. Add the stock, tomatoes, parsley, and bay leaves, stirring well. Bring to a gentle simmer, so that the soup is just barely bubbling. Reduce the heat to maintain the simmer, and whisk in the roux. Simmer for about 20 minutes.

While the soup is simmering, heat 2 tablespoons oil in another skillet over medium-high heat, and saute the okra, stirring occasionally, until just browned.

Add the okra, smoked sausage, and shrimp to the simmering soup, and cook a few minutes more to heat through. Taste, and add more salt and pepper if needed.

Place about 2/3 cup rice in the bottom of each soup bowl, and ladle gumbo over top, or stir rice into the soup just before serving.

Serves six.