Shrimp Gumbo

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

Probably my favorite dish to make. This gumbo is perfectly seasoned, not to hot, not to mild. A great beginner recipe. Prep is easy enough and cooking is simple to do. A huge hit every time a make it.

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

This gumbo comes out great! What's more, it made the dish accessible; not a mysterious restaurant delicacy, but something which could be understood then tinkered with. Make it once to the letter, then customize to your taste the next time you make it. The raw shrimp can be hard to find, so if you are short you can use a bag of frozen shrimp and add a cup of clam juice to the broth.

Also, I ended up doubling the recipe as well as the proportion of vegetables in the recipe. Lastly, time your cooking so that the broth is finished before the roux. If you add a hot broth to a hot roux then the remaining thickening power in the flour may cause it to set before dispersing in the broth, creating clumps. If the broth is just warm, then the flour in the roux will mix in and then set some minutes later after the whole thing comes back up to temp.

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

Every receipe I have tried of Altons has been very good.
This way to cook roux is easy. I did a chicken and sausage gumbo.
I am doing the shrimp gumbo next.
Only thing it only feeds 6 people so if you are making it for all the folks coming over to see the New Orleans Saints game, it ain't enough!! Should I just double it?

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

The roux alone is priceless. No more mindless stirring at the stove, or using the jar type that flavor may or may not work. I am cooking this roux and gumbo a lot. I love it. My mother won a local Gumbo Cookoff years ago and this is better than that!

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

The first time I tried this recipe, I followed it to the letter and was very happy with the results. The second time, I decided to improvise. I used the base method of baking the roux, adding the trinity (celery, onion, & green pepper, the tomatoes, and the seasonings (doubling all the quantities. But I switched up the meats. First, I stirred in about 2.5 cups of homemade chicken broth. Then,I had a pound of chorizo sausage on hand, so i baked it in the oven, chopped it up and added it. I also had a couple of pounds of chicken wings and 2 chicken breasts that I wanted to use up. I roasted them, took the meat off the bones, and added that (saving the skin & bones for a future soup base. Finally, I had about a half pound of braised chuck roast leftover in the fridge, so I shredded it up and stirred it in. It was fantastic! Using all those roasted meats made the gumbo very rich and flavorful. Everyone loved it.

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

I cook a lot of cajun/creole food, and this was the first attempt at making roux in the oven. The method worked great and produced an outstanding result. I also added some okra prior to adding the shrimp stock, due to personal preference. I did not use file powder, but the combination of the roux and the okra produced a nice consistency. Thanks for the outstanding recipe!

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

It's not a hard dish to make, just time consuming. And if you live where I do you have to do a hard search for the file (pronounced Fee-lay powder and head-on shrimp. It was certainly worth the time and effort though. Everyone loved it and immediately asked when I was making it again.
Enjoy!

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

Today I became a believer. I have made roux in various methods over the years, from stirring until my arm falls off, to high heat cajun napalm. I would never have believed it was this simple. I resisted this recipe because I said, oven roux could not be good. I WAS WRONG. excellent roux, great gumbo. I urge everyone to demystify roux, making and try this recipe, very good. For those who like okra just add sauted okra and reduce the file. Personally, I like this recipe, being a northener I just never could get the hang of okra. Well done Recipe!!!

Rick

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

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!

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

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!