Laissez les bons temps rouler

[Drac]

Mardi Gras is Tuesday!!!

Having a party at work and planning to do up some gumbo and some crawfish Étouffée.  Since this is my first venture into classic Creole I did some searches and came across this site -

http://www.gumbopages.com/recipe-page.html (also has some sausage recipes)

They had a chicken and sausage gumbo that doesn't have stewed tomatoes (not a big fan) that I plan to use.  Also the Étouffée recipe.

Anyone else have plans?  Recipe suggestions? 

Jim

[KyNola]

I might have a few! ;)

http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=14866.0

http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=11947.0

http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=13499.0

[Drac]

Thanks!!!

I am thinking that I might sub the pie for the Étouffée.  I'll need less crock pots to keep everything warm.

Jim

[hal4uk]

Just try the gumbo at K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen in NOLA, and then remember to just not make anything that tastes like THAT. 
Stated differently... Don't burn the dang roux and you can't go too far wrong.  ;)

[Ka Honu]

...the gumbo at K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen in NOLA

That was not our best lunch choice, was it?  We should have been a bit more suspicious when we saw the takeout menu from the place across the street sitting by the cash register.

[Drac]

Last year when we went to NOLA for a Mardi Gras weekend (2nd weekend I believe) we did some food touring.  Went to Mother's and Johnny's.  Had a Ferdi at Mother's and sea food gumbo with a boudin po-boy. 

Looking forward to using the andouille and tasso I did up last month :D

As for the roux I was going to try the Alton Brown technique the first time.  Seems less likely to screw up for a beginner.

Jim

[hal4uk]

...the gumbo at K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen in NOLA

That was not our best lunch choice, was it?  We should have been a bit more suspicious when we saw the takeout menu from the place across the street sitting by the cash register.

Bingo.  Of course, our first clue should have been that Larry, who spends more time than any of us in NOLA, decided to pass on that excursion.

[KyNola]

...the gumbo at K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen in NOLA

That was not our best lunch choice, was it?  We should have been a bit more suspicious when we saw the takeout menu from the place across the street sitting by the cash register.

Bingo.  Of course, our first clue should have been that Larry, who spends more time than any of us in NOLA, decided to pass on that excursion.

;)Funnily enough on our last trip down there I discovered my newest favorite place for gumbo in the FQ and strangely enough it is in a pizza joint.  Louisiana Pizza Kitchen at the down river side of the FQ across the street from the French Market.  They do amazing pizzas in a wood fired oven there with great wine and other goodies.  Apparently they also make their roux in the wood fired oven as the gumbo has a great smokey flavor to it.  Still trying to figure out exactly how they are doing it.

Headed back down to NOLA over Easter so I will test drive their gumbo again!

[hal4uk]

I think we should all move down there, open a little place in an alley, and call it "Not K-Paul's" or "NKP Diner" and let em figger it out...

[Ka Honu]

Apparently they also make their roux in the wood fired oven as the gumbo has a great smokey flavor to it.  Still trying to figure out exactly how they are doing it.

Might just be a dry roux - put a pan of flour in a 400^o oven and stir every 10 minutes until it gets the color you want. The wood-fired oven would give you the smoky taste.

Headed back down to NOLA over Easter ...

I think our next "overlap" is in 2014 when Easter is on April 20th and JazzFest starts on the 25th - better tell everyone to mark their calendars and  start planning to be there.

[TomW]

Redfish Bon-Ton from Bon-Ton Cafe.... worth the trip.

Tom

[Drac]

Spent yesterday afternoon doing the misa en pas aka chopping a ton of Trinity.  Three containers of Trinity.  Though I wonder if it is a Trinity since it always seems to have chopped garlic too.

A quick question for the experts.  The recipes say to brown the chicken, sausage and tasso and than drain.  Make the roux with a nutral oil and flour.  Why not use the fats collected from browning the meats?  That is how my mother makes the blond rouxs she uses to make chicken gravy and I use the bacon drippings for a blond roux for gravy too.

Thanks,
Jim

[Ka Honu]

Why not use the fats collected from browning the meats? 

Good question.  I've been doing that for years and don't know why it's not printed in recipes that way except that it may be more difficult to measure the amount of fat you need.  I originally thought you were more likely to burn the roux that way but that never seemed to be a problem.

[DisplacedCoonass]

Why not use the fats collected from browning the meats? 

If the recipes are from Louisiana, there's a good bet they were written in the 80's.  Since we're heart disease central, a lot of folks tried to replace the natural fats from meats with supposed good fats from canola or vegetable oils.  I can remember my grandmother going through all her recipes and replacing the oleo and lard with margarine and crisco.

[Drac]

Thanks.  I will pour it into a cup than top it off to the needed amount but I didn't want to waste all that flavor-filled fat.

Jim