Shrimp Gumbo

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I am currently a college student, who is new to the cooking game with a budget. this is the first dish i ever made on my own, and i have to say, it was better than i expected! I was pretty disappointed at first because i couldn't taste the flavor, but when i ate it the next day, the flavors totally bloomed. I made everything accordingly, but added more spices to my taste preference. My boyfriend and friends really enjoyed the gumbo. I suggest, watching the "good eat" episodes of this dish to see how alton brown makes his gumbo, just to get an idea of what to do and expect. watching the show seriously helped me avoid burning the roux and gave me a clever idea how to peel the shrimps. This is a really good dish and i will probably make it again when my boyfriend and i crave homemade gumbo. godspeed with your own gumbo creations!

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DO NOT be tempted to skip the shrimp broth step and use chicken broth instead! It makes all the difference in the finished product! And the roux in the oven method is awesome! Alton, it's true...you are a genius!

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This was great! Lots of flavor.

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I would never make this wonderful dish without the magic Roux making method that Alton provides. Brick roux has never been so easy. What a superb comfort food! I do have to mail order my file powder (NOT chile powder and I do alter the meat on occassion (chicken instead of shrimp or just double up on the andouille. Vegetables can vary, but always include okra and corn. It never fails to attract extra guests for dinner when word goes out that Mama has gumbo cookin'.

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Very, very tasty! Found it to be time consuming-yet very easy!

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I haven't tried this recipe (I make the best gumbo in my family, but I was interested in the roux preparation that Alton suggested on his show. The making of roux is a very delicate and timely procedure and also is the crucial part of a good gumbo.
I wanted to make a comment on the lack of okra in Alton's recipe. Okra is what makes gumbo truly gumbo. Without it, it's not gumbo! Any good southern cook that knows the origins of gumbo knows this fact.
Okra is one of the ingredients that thickens the gumbo, but not the only ingredient. It can make a gumbo somewhat slimy if prepared improperly. You can saute' the okra in a separate skillet and then add it, or do what I do by adding it (fresh or frozen the last 30 minutes of cooking. I also add the shrimp or other seafood in at this time as well.
I'm going to try the roux preparation tip that Alton suggests. It will certainly make it easier than standing over a hot cast iron dutch oven stirring for a long period of time! I have tried other recipes by Alton that have been very good and I think he is both informative and entertaining.

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Making the roux in the oven worked very well. It was sooo easy. Even though it took a while to pull the whole thing together it was well worth it. My family loved it... thank goodness there was some leftovers for the next day. I coudn't find the gumbo file but it tasted great without it. I would recomend this to anyone, and will make it again in the future. Thank you Alton!!!!!

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Alton is a great entertainer and my family and myself love to watch him. I had never cooked gumbo before and when i watched this on the TV i thought why not? I did not make it with shrimp broth,but instead used chicken stock and eliminated the shrimp and added extra sausage and chicken. My family, who like shrimp, just put some shrimp in their bowl and poured the gumbo over it, that way they get what they want and i don't have to deal with the shrimp, which i don't care for.

one of the things that i love about Alton's recipes are they are so easily adaptable to what you want to do that is different.

I know he has been instrumental in my son wanting to be a chef, of course before he wanted to be a neurosurgeon, so i don't know how i feel about the change.

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I've made this twice. Several comments noted 1 Tbs salt was too much, so I reduced to 1 Tsp, which seemed perfect. 1.5 hr in an 8 qt Le Creuset pot didn?t result in roux as red as Alton?s, but he said 1 ? +/- 15 min (may be such a big pot takes some time to heat up, so I should go longer next time. Substituted ~20 count shrimp, so added a bit more time/heat at end to cook through. Only used ~ 2 Tsp of file, since it seemed pretty thick already and last time the recommended 1 Tbs made it very gloppy (and an disconcerting green!. I got my file from World Spice Merchants in Seattle, and it may be more potent than Alton's grocery store stuff. Not a hard recipe, but takes some time. Tastes nice, but next time I might kick the heat up a bit more.

Alton, is this roux method your idea? If so, it may be your single greatest contribution to culinary science!!!

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I lived in New Orleans for 6 years. Best Gumbo I had came from the kitchens of natives, not the restaurants. When I cooked this gumbo, it brought back memories of those home kitchens. But of course the main difference is the fact that they slaved over the roux, and this roux is so easy, it's almost disheartening to think that folks have been subjecting themselves to the stovetop roux for so long now.

I've been making this recipe for a while now, probably since the Bowl O' Bayou episode first aired. The only modification I made is using the okra instead of the file. I can't stand the file in there. Following Alton's use of file on my first try, I found it to be way too slimy. But I could tell that the flavor was so good that it was worth another try with my okra, and I love okra anyway. Gumbo isn't gumbo to me without okra. After I made it with the okra, I was sold. I'm making a big batch this weekend for a bunch of friends.