G is for Gumbo -- #atozchallenge

Few foods define a culture quite like gumbo, or as some are inclined to cleverly spell it, gumbeaux. Gumbo brings people together. When a cook makes a gumbo, he/she brings out the biggest pot imaginable and invites a crowd. It's a food that implies celebration. Gumbo was one of those foods completely new to me upon moving to Lake Charles. Not long after we came to Louisiana, I got on a gumbo kick and ate it voraciously. Every restaurant I went to, I had to try the gumbo. It's a food that never tastes the same twice. Every cook has their own unique recipe, likely passed down through generations. It is basically a stew with onions, celery, peppers, and some type of protein, served with rice. The most common varieties are chicken and sausage or seafood, ie shrimp, crab, or crawfish. Some versions have okra, which I do not particularly care for. And some have a seasoning called filé, which is made from ground sassafras leaves.



Bridge City, Louisiana hosts a Gumbo Festival; this year it will take place October 14-16. To be honest, I suspect many Louisiana cities have gumbo festivals of some sort. It's that kind of thing. Lake Charles likely has two or three a year!  But according to the Bridge City website, the Gumbo Fest in this town of approximately 8,000 people is "World Famous"! It says over 2000 gallons of both seafood and chicken/sausage gumbo are prepared and served during the festival. Wow!

Gumbo is such an integral part of Louisiana culture, I've written two posts on the subject, and it is mentioned in countless others. You can read my thoughts on gumbo here and here.

Stay tuned! Tomorrow we celebrate hot air balloons and honey bees.

Gumbo!

Louisianians love food. They love to cook food, celebrate food, talk about food, eat food. And so it’s natural that they would also compete over food. Cook-offs. Who makes the best barbeque, boudin, jambalaya, boiled crawfish. And of course, gumbo.

There are so many things that uniquely define Louisiana, especially when it comes to cuisine. And I remain fascinated by all of them. Gumbo remains near the top of the list.

A Lake Charles Mardi Gras tradition took place this past Saturday -- the annual Gumbo Cook-Off.

The cool thing about gumbo is that no two gumbos taste alike. Most cooks do not use a recipe, but rather make it like their mama taught them. A pinch of this, a shake of that, with varying amounts of spices such as file´. Chicken and sausage gumbo is very traditional. But there are also seafood gumbos with shrimp and crab and wild game gumbos (with who knows what). And in each of those categories are endless variations. Typically, gumbo is served over rice. But some put a dollop of potato salad on top. Some serve it with a hard boiled egg. Should gumbo contain okra? People either love it or hate it.

I’m not sure how many teams competed this year. Twenty or so? Five dollars admission gets you all the gumbo you care to sample. Two bowls fill me up. I prefer chicken and sausage. Seafood is often good, but sometimes a bit fishy-tasting. Wild game – I won’t go there. I’m never quite sure what I’m eating in that category.

It's a great event, complete with live music, dancing, and Mardi Gras merriment. But I’d really like it if the organizers would move the venue to a larger location. It is such a popular event, the place is packed.

Here’s the crew on the PPG team. I don’t know who won the event, but these guys made a delicious chicken and sausage variety.

What is your favorite gumbo and who makes it?

Bon appétit!

Bowl--ing For Dollars

I love annual events. Because if I want to go or participate in something but miss it for some reason, I can always go . . . next year. Such was the case earlier today. For the past several years, I’ve been curious about a fundraiser sponsored by McNeese State University’s art department called GumBowl. The art students create around 575 ceramic bowls.




For ten bucks, you get a bowl of your choice, and a bowl of gumbo. Popular local caterer The Brickhouse provided vats of gumbo, with a choice of chicken and sausage or seafood.

I laughed at myself because I imagined one would choose a bowl, and the gumbo would be served in that bowl. Immediately, my OCD kicked in. Are these bowls clean? Look, everyone is touching them! But I needn’t have worried. They wrap your bowl in newspaper and serve the gumbo in Styrofoam.


I couldn’t resist those shrimp. But swimming along with those shrimp were two plump juicy oysters. Can you see them? I’ve never liked oysters. And to prove it, I actually ate one today. Nope, decidedly do not like oysters. For my northern readers, that’s potato salad atop the gumbo.

I chose this pretty blue bowl. And a purple one for a friend.




Totally off topic here . . . does anyone remember the TV game
show Bowling For Dollars? Just thinking about that reminds me of my grandparents.