22 ms·

There are few dishes that bring so much pleasure than gumbo. The best gumbo (and best Cajun music) is from Lafayette in the SW part of the state. Only found o

by rmason 6y ago

There are few dishes that bring so much pleasure than gumbo. The best gumbo (and best Cajun music) is from Lafayette in the SW part of the state. Only found one chef in Michigan who could make a really good gumbo and he's a Louisiana native. Sadly he's gone back down there. Just aren't enough people in Central Michigan area who like Cajun food enough to make a successful business.

Pelic4n 6y ago
I'm french and looooove Cajun food & Gumbo. What is a good way to learn to cook this way ? I watched a lot of youtube videos.
- philiplu 6y ago
  I’ve no idea how authentic the cooking was, but way back in the 70s and 80s, I used to watch Justin Wilson, the Cajun chef, on TV. Looks like there are a number of episodes on YouTube.
  - selimthegrim 6y ago
    John Folse is good too if you can get a hold of him
  - JoeDaDude 6y ago
    Yes, this is Justin Wilson's gumbo recipe. I can't speak for it's authenticity to Cajun ways, but it was easy to make and good to eat. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eK4umRMJlrs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eK4umRMJlrs
  - neverartful 6y ago
    LOL. We used to laugh at that guy. I'm sure his cooking was good, but his accent and mannerisms always seemed to be a little over the top (a schtick).
  - mc32 6y ago
    Only thing I got is a Tony Chachere cookbook. No idea how authentic or not it is, but it’s not pretentious.
  - PTOB 6y ago
    Justin Wilson was most certainly a real Cajun, and his cooking was authentic. The Wikipedia bio article[1] seems pretty accurate and fair. His TV persona was an act, but it was a genuine caricature of Cajun fun and humor. Funny as hell, and my kids love watching recordings on Youtube. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Wilson_(chef) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Wilson_(chef)
- rmason 6y ago
  There used to be a cooking school in New Orleans that taught it. But this was before the hurricane so I don't know if it's still there. It was aimed at amateur cooks rather than professionals. Here's a list of current cooking schools in New Orleans: https://gonola.com/food-drink-in-new-orleans/new-orleans-cooking-classes https://gonola.com/food-drink-in-new-orleans/new-orleans-coo... Might be a great idea for a Masterclass series online.
- trynewideas 6y ago
  The quick answer is to get and cook through Don Link's Real Cajun: https://www.powells.com/book/real-cajun-rustic-home-cooking-from-donald-links-louisiana-9780307395818 https://www.powells.com/book/real-cajun-rustic-home-cooking-... Link's known as a New Orleans chef and James Beard Award winner, but he's Cajun as hell and his recipes are largely no-nonsense, easy to make, and stay away from unusual ingredients. Start with jambalaya, which is delicious and not as difficult to learn as making a roux for gumbo. More philosophically, understand two things: - Traditional Cajun food is farm food. These are dishes meant to be cooked slow while you're working, and in servings that load up a large family (or whole neighborhood) to prep for another day of it. - Favor freshness, flavor, improvisation, and community over any concept of canonical accuracy. There's no ideal "Cajun seasoning" (although I will swear to my grave on smoked and hot paprika being key components), and no foolproof roux-making method. No one single way to go about any of it. French concepts divorced from their European pretense -- compare Cajun boudin to continental French boudin, for instance -- then spun with Choctaw, Coushatta, and Caddo techniques (fry breads, native herbs, and steaming shellfish and gulf seafood), German immigrants making sausages out of pork but also game duck and deer (and beer), West African and Caribbean stews, vegetables, and barbecue, Spanish rice dishes and tamales, and a willingness to cook and eat any animal slow or stupid enough to get caught. In the end it all comes down to how to stretch one chicken/pig/deer/duck/rabbit/turtle/catfish/basket of crawfish/whatever into a week of food when all you really have to eat is a huge pot of long-grain rice that you don't have time to fuss over. It's culinary alchemy. That's why I suggest learning jambalaya first, because it embodies this concept: you cut and fry up one chicken and cook it in a stock pot with enough rice to serve a dozen people, and your goal is to make the entire pot taste like it's all chicken. If you can do that, and wrap your head around how it happens, the rest of it just sort of falls into place.
  - js2 6y ago
    The Spanish version of this being Paella. I learned how to cook Cajun watching Emeril on the Food Network over twenty years ago. I hope it wasn’t phony. :-)
  - neverartful 6y ago
    I grew up in a small town in the Lafayette area and I concur with all of your points. I would also add that traditional Cajun food is poor man's food. They're made from low cost ingredients. In some cases, there could be some no-cost ingredients (e.g., if neighbor gives you fresh ducks from their morning hunt). Probably one of the most divisive ingredients for gumbo is okra. Some will tell you that it's not a real gumbo if it doesn't have okra. The other camp won't eat it if it does contain okra. On the use of file, I could probably count on 1 hand the number of times I've seen it used. Everyone knows about it, but I've never witnessed it being commonly used. The two biggest challenges (IMO) of gumbo are the roux (making it without burning/scorching it, in which case you have to throw it out and start over) and the sausage. My family stopped making roux decades ago. They all buy pre-made roux. You can buy it with and without oil. I prefer using the roux without the oil because the jar doesn't need to be refrigerated after opening and it doesn't spoil (plus it's healthier). My family always has used smoked sausage for all gumbo (whether it's chicken, seafood, duck, etc.). Finding fresh smoked sausage to impart the desired flavor is very difficult. The very best (IMO) is the smoked sausage made by Teet's Food Store in Ville Platte. I'll add on to your comment about the slow cooking. Not only the food should be cooked slow, but the chef should not be in a hurry. In my experience, my best gumbo and jambalaya comes from having plenty of time to cook it at a leisurely pace. Also, my jambalaya is only cooked in big cast iron pots. One of my Cajun cookbooks gives the admonition "Qui va doucettement va surement" (He who goes slowly goes surely). Dang it, now I'm craving some.
- wahern 6y ago
  The Gumbo Pages has great recipes and explanations: https://www.gumbopages.com/food/ https://www.gumbopages.com/food/ The site is a relic from the early internet, in all the best ways.
pvaldes 6y ago
Didn't knew that Sasafras leaves were edible. Atlas Obscura hitting again. What is its taste?
- nkozyra 6y ago
  Keep in mind they were a key ingredient in "root" beers in the 19th century (leaves and bark). I thought culinary use was technically not legal due to cancer concerns. The leaves can also be psychoactive.
  - pvaldes 6y ago
    Is a Lauraceae if I'm not wrong. A cousin of bayleaf, so should be more seen as a spice than as a dish.
  - vonmoltke 6y ago
    Cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, star anise, ginger, and real pepper all contain small amounts of safrole (the actual chemical) as well. It would be ridiculous to propose banning herbs and spices due to naturally-occurring safrole.
    - nkozyra 6y ago
      I imagine it has to do with the quantity. And the FDA did indeed ban it: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfrsearch.cfm?fr=189.180 https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfr...
7thaccount 6y ago
Anywhere Lafayette (wife's family owns a famous Cajun restaurant there) or further South is fine as you'll essentially be in Cajun Country. If they sell cracklings or Boudin by the side of the road instead of snowcone stands, you're in the right place. Lafayette, Baton Rouge, New Orleans are all great. The middle of the state (Alexandria region called Cenla for Central Louisiana) is a mixture of south Louisiana influence and the more Northern influences, so the Cajun influences are there, but watered down. Northern Louisiana is nothing like the rest of the state. With the exception of Shreveport and Monroe (maybe Ruston) it is mostly small towns and has a very Bible belt feel to it. Some call it "South Arkansas" as it has more in common with that region. I've had gumbo and jambalaya made by Cajun family and the best places in the South and it's much better than anywhere else in the US when it is made properly. I've had plenty of what's called gumbo/jambalaya in other southern states and it is good, but doesn't quite taste right.
- jriot 6y ago
  I live where I can get cracklins', Boudin, and snowcones on the side of the road. Is that extra right?
  - 7thaccount 6y ago
    It means you can have your heart attack and diabetes inducing temptations all in one spot :) What about drive-through daiquiris? Seriously, my most missed part of Louisiana. If we weren't up for cocktails, my wife and I would each get a sonic cup sized frozen daquiri of pure deliciousness. For whatever reason this is just not a thing in most states.
    - jriot 6y ago
      Forgot about that! I have two different drive-thru daiquiris near my house. We had friend's visit from Seattle and we took them. They were surprised how much alcohol they put in them. They expected them to be weak since it was drive-thru daiquiris.
- MisterBastahrd 6y ago

by rmason 6y ago

Pelic4n 6y ago

I'm french and looooove Cajun food & Gumbo. What is a good way to learn to cook this way ? I watched a lot of youtube videos.

philiplu 6y ago
I’ve no idea how authentic the cooking was, but way back in the 70s and 80s, I used to watch Justin Wilson, the Cajun chef, on TV. Looks like there are a number of episodes on YouTube.
- selimthegrim 6y ago
  John Folse is good too if you can get a hold of him
- JoeDaDude 6y ago
  Yes, this is Justin Wilson's gumbo recipe. I can't speak for it's authenticity to Cajun ways, but it was easy to make and good to eat. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eK4umRMJlrs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eK4umRMJlrs
- neverartful 6y ago
  LOL. We used to laugh at that guy. I'm sure his cooking was good, but his accent and mannerisms always seemed to be a little over the top (a schtick).
- mc32 6y ago
  Only thing I got is a Tony Chachere cookbook. No idea how authentic or not it is, but it’s not pretentious.
- PTOB 6y ago
  Justin Wilson was most certainly a real Cajun, and his cooking was authentic. The Wikipedia bio article[1] seems pretty accurate and fair. His TV persona was an act, but it was a genuine caricature of Cajun fun and humor. Funny as hell, and my kids love watching recordings on Youtube. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Wilson_(chef) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Wilson_(chef)
rmason 6y ago
There used to be a cooking school in New Orleans that taught it. But this was before the hurricane so I don't know if it's still there. It was aimed at amateur cooks rather than professionals. Here's a list of current cooking schools in New Orleans: https://gonola.com/food-drink-in-new-orleans/new-orleans-cooking-classes https://gonola.com/food-drink-in-new-orleans/new-orleans-coo... Might be a great idea for a Masterclass series online.
trynewideas 6y ago
The quick answer is to get and cook through Don Link's Real Cajun: https://www.powells.com/book/real-cajun-rustic-home-cooking-from-donald-links-louisiana-9780307395818 https://www.powells.com/book/real-cajun-rustic-home-cooking-... Link's known as a New Orleans chef and James Beard Award winner, but he's Cajun as hell and his recipes are largely no-nonsense, easy to make, and stay away from unusual ingredients. Start with jambalaya, which is delicious and not as difficult to learn as making a roux for gumbo. More philosophically, understand two things: - Traditional Cajun food is farm food. These are dishes meant to be cooked slow while you're working, and in servings that load up a large family (or whole neighborhood) to prep for another day of it. - Favor freshness, flavor, improvisation, and community over any concept of canonical accuracy. There's no ideal "Cajun seasoning" (although I will swear to my grave on smoked and hot paprika being key components), and no foolproof roux-making method. No one single way to go about any of it. French concepts divorced from their European pretense -- compare Cajun boudin to continental French boudin, for instance -- then spun with Choctaw, Coushatta, and Caddo techniques (fry breads, native herbs, and steaming shellfish and gulf seafood), German immigrants making sausages out of pork but also game duck and deer (and beer), West African and Caribbean stews, vegetables, and barbecue, Spanish rice dishes and tamales, and a willingness to cook and eat any animal slow or stupid enough to get caught. In the end it all comes down to how to stretch one chicken/pig/deer/duck/rabbit/turtle/catfish/basket of crawfish/whatever into a week of food when all you really have to eat is a huge pot of long-grain rice that you don't have time to fuss over. It's culinary alchemy. That's why I suggest learning jambalaya first, because it embodies this concept: you cut and fry up one chicken and cook it in a stock pot with enough rice to serve a dozen people, and your goal is to make the entire pot taste like it's all chicken. If you can do that, and wrap your head around how it happens, the rest of it just sort of falls into place.
- js2 6y ago
  The Spanish version of this being Paella. I learned how to cook Cajun watching Emeril on the Food Network over twenty years ago. I hope it wasn’t phony. :-)
- neverartful 6y ago
  I grew up in a small town in the Lafayette area and I concur with all of your points. I would also add that traditional Cajun food is poor man's food. They're made from low cost ingredients. In some cases, there could be some no-cost ingredients (e.g., if neighbor gives you fresh ducks from their morning hunt). Probably one of the most divisive ingredients for gumbo is okra. Some will tell you that it's not a real gumbo if it doesn't have okra. The other camp won't eat it if it does contain okra. On the use of file, I could probably count on 1 hand the number of times I've seen it used. Everyone knows about it, but I've never witnessed it being commonly used. The two biggest challenges (IMO) of gumbo are the roux (making it without burning/scorching it, in which case you have to throw it out and start over) and the sausage. My family stopped making roux decades ago. They all buy pre-made roux. You can buy it with and without oil. I prefer using the roux without the oil because the jar doesn't need to be refrigerated after opening and it doesn't spoil (plus it's healthier). My family always has used smoked sausage for all gumbo (whether it's chicken, seafood, duck, etc.). Finding fresh smoked sausage to impart the desired flavor is very difficult. The very best (IMO) is the smoked sausage made by Teet's Food Store in Ville Platte. I'll add on to your comment about the slow cooking. Not only the food should be cooked slow, but the chef should not be in a hurry. In my experience, my best gumbo and jambalaya comes from having plenty of time to cook it at a leisurely pace. Also, my jambalaya is only cooked in big cast iron pots. One of my Cajun cookbooks gives the admonition "Qui va doucettement va surement" (He who goes slowly goes surely). Dang it, now I'm craving some.
wahern 6y ago
The Gumbo Pages has great recipes and explanations: https://www.gumbopages.com/food/ https://www.gumbopages.com/food/ The site is a relic from the early internet, in all the best ways.

pvaldes 6y ago

Didn't knew that Sasafras leaves were edible. Atlas Obscura hitting again. What is its taste?

nkozyra 6y ago
Keep in mind they were a key ingredient in "root" beers in the 19th century (leaves and bark). I thought culinary use was technically not legal due to cancer concerns. The leaves can also be psychoactive.
- pvaldes 6y ago
  Is a Lauraceae if I'm not wrong. A cousin of bayleaf, so should be more seen as a spice than as a dish.
- vonmoltke 6y ago
  Cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, star anise, ginger, and real pepper all contain small amounts of safrole (the actual chemical) as well. It would be ridiculous to propose banning herbs and spices due to naturally-occurring safrole.
  - nkozyra 6y ago
    I imagine it has to do with the quantity. And the FDA did indeed ban it: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfrsearch.cfm?fr=189.180 https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfr...

7thaccount 6y ago

Anywhere Lafayette (wife's family owns a famous Cajun restaurant there) or further South is fine as you'll essentially be in Cajun Country. If they sell cracklings or Boudin by the side of the road instead of snowcone stands, you're in the right place. Lafayette, Baton Rouge, New Orleans are all great. The middle of the state (Alexandria region called Cenla for Central Louisiana) is a mixture of south Louisiana influence and the more Northern influences, so the Cajun influences are there, but watered down. Northern Louisiana is nothing like the rest of the state. With the exception of Shreveport and Monroe (maybe Ruston) it is mostly small towns and has a very Bible belt feel to it. Some call it "South Arkansas" as it has more in common with that region. I've had gumbo and jambalaya made by Cajun family and the best places in the South and it's much better than anywhere else in the US when it is made properly. I've had plenty of what's called gumbo/jambalaya in other southern states and it is good, but doesn't quite taste right.

jriot 6y ago
I live where I can get cracklins', Boudin, and snowcones on the side of the road. Is that extra right?
- 7thaccount 6y ago
  It means you can have your heart attack and diabetes inducing temptations all in one spot :) What about drive-through daiquiris? Seriously, my most missed part of Louisiana. If we weren't up for cocktails, my wife and I would each get a sonic cup sized frozen daquiri of pure deliciousness. For whatever reason this is just not a thing in most states.
  - jriot 6y ago
    Forgot about that! I have two different drive-thru daiquiris near my house. We had friend's visit from Seattle and we took them. They were surprised how much alcohol they put in them. They expected them to be weak since it was drive-thru daiquiris.
MisterBastahrd 6y ago