It’s funny that I chose to make gumbo last week – I was not the only one thinking about delicious fall stews. One of my favourite blogs – the Post Punk Kitchen also posted a recipe for gumbo. I think it must be the cooler weather in the evenings. The recipe I used was from Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone – Red bean Gumbo with greens.
It was full of tasty kale, hearty kidney beans, and lots of aromatics and as I returned to the leftovers over the week it became more and more delicious. I started by making my beans from scratch. In the past I never had time for this step but lately I’ve been waking up ridiculously early on Sunday mornings so I soaked the beans that morning and started cooking them by 3PM. The recipe called for a crazy amount of greens as you can see.
Like Isa, gumbo was not a food I grew up with. It takes practice to get the roux just right and every time I make one I still get nervous about burning it. (But, 101 cookbooks has some great tips on how to get your roux right). I think I liked this recipe because it’s full of ingredients that I am familiar with and no okra in sight. I served it over some brown-long grain rice which cooked as I cooked the gumbo. And, other than my nervousness making the roux it was a pretty easy recipe to make and it is a great Sunday afternoon cooking experience. If you are looking for a delicious fall stew try this recipe and let me know what you think.
West Wellington Veggie 