The Native-American Origins of Gumbo(atlasobscura.com)
atlasobscura.com
The Native-American Origins of Gumbo
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/native-american-gumbo
44 comments
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.
The Gumbo Pages has great recipes and explanations: https://www.gumbopages.com/food/ The site is a relic from the early internet, in all the best ways.
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.
John Folse is good too if you can get a hold of him
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
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).
Only thing I got is a Tony Chachere cookbook. No idea how authentic or not it is, but it’s not pretentious.
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)
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Wilson_(chef)
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-coo...
Might be a great idea for a Masterclass series online.
Here's a list of current cooking schools in New Orleans:
https://gonola.com/food-drink-in-new-orleans/new-orleans-coo...
Might be a great idea for a Masterclass series online.
The quick answer is to get and cook through Don Link's Real Cajun: 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.
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.
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. :-)
I learned how to cook Cajun watching Emeril on the Food Network over twenty years ago. I hope it wasn’t phony. :-)
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.
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.
> "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."
egads! having grown up in the south (but not in louisiana), i cannot wrap my mind around gumbo without okra. it seems so essential to the taste. how can it not have okra? what replaces it?
i've had tasty gumbo in new orleans and other places, but alas, i can't find any good gumbo in (the city of) LA, with or without okra.
egads! having grown up in the south (but not in louisiana), i cannot wrap my mind around gumbo without okra. it seems so essential to the taste. how can it not have okra? what replaces it?
i've had tasty gumbo in new orleans and other places, but alas, i can't find any good gumbo in (the city of) LA, with or without okra.
Haha. I'm one of those who despises okra and won't touch any gumbo that's been ruined with it. The taste and the smell are both abhorrent!
ah, so a general distaste for okra, which i can't relate to, but can understand--i feel that way about celery (though i can tolerate it if cooked in with other stuff).
Didn't knew that Sasafras leaves were edible. Atlas Obscura hitting again. What is its taste?
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.
I thought culinary use was technically not legal due to cancer concerns. The leaves can also be psychoactive.
Is a Lauraceae if I'm not wrong. A cousin of bayleaf, so should be more seen as a spice than as a dish.
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.
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/cfr...
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfr...
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.
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.
In the early part of this century I had another startup and Internet radio was just starting. I found louisianaradio.com which was headquartered in Lafayette and I had it on in our office all the time. The two guys running it at the time even sent me a bumper sticker I put on my pickup. Sadly it is no more but I understand they run a record label in Lafayette.
I live where I can get cracklins', Boudin, and snowcones on the side of the road. Is that extra right?
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.
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.
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.
In DFW, Brookshires sells a smoked Zummo's brand that, while not as good as what I can get at a place like Billy's, is great coming out of the air fryer. 17 minutes at 380 degres yields a boudin with a skin that will snap to a fork.
The River Parishes (St. Charles, St. John, St. James) are pretty much their own region too. It's a mixture of New Orleans and Cajun plus a healthy dose of German.
The River Parishes (St. Charles, St. John, St. James) are pretty much their own region too. It's a mixture of New Orleans and Cajun plus a healthy dose of German.
Zummo's is from my hometown of Beaumont, Texas. SW Louisiana and coastal SE Texas share quite a bit of that Cajun culture. I have unsuccessfully tried to persuade Zummo's to send their delicious Party Time Hot Links to my current home in Colorado. If you're here and you work for Zummo's, please listen to my plea!
Lafayette is indeed the heart of Cajun Country (Acadiana). Although it spills over in various degrees to other parts of the state, Acadiana itself is a well-defined, specific area that includes Lafayette, Carencro, Breaux Bridge, St. Martinville, New Iberia, Abbeville, and Crowley (this list is not exclusive, but just to give the idea).
Baton Rouge and New Orleans are most definitely not Cajun. Sure, you'll find pockets of authenticity, but generally speaking they're not. New Orleans is Creole, a mixture of various influences but primarily French, Spanish, and Native American. There are other parts of the state that have a fairly pure French heritage that are not Cajun nor Creole (towns in the central part of the state like New Roads and Ville Platte).
'Cajun' is the one that is most well known, but Creole and non-Acadian French (ancestors came directly from France, not exiled from Nova Scotia) also have outstanding cuisine. Some of this may feel like splitting hairs, but the distinctions are important for some of the Louisiana natives.
Baton Rouge and New Orleans are most definitely not Cajun. Sure, you'll find pockets of authenticity, but generally speaking they're not. New Orleans is Creole, a mixture of various influences but primarily French, Spanish, and Native American. There are other parts of the state that have a fairly pure French heritage that are not Cajun nor Creole (towns in the central part of the state like New Roads and Ville Platte).
'Cajun' is the one that is most well known, but Creole and non-Acadian French (ancestors came directly from France, not exiled from Nova Scotia) also have outstanding cuisine. Some of this may feel like splitting hairs, but the distinctions are important for some of the Louisiana natives.
There's a large Cajun influence in both places. You're of course correct that I didn't cover the creole part. I was mainly using the term "Cajun" in a general sense which although not super correct is how people generally use it.
Many Native American tribes do not sell food. They prepare it and share it with their community. This is why it is hard to find authentic Native American restaurants.
some gumbo-adjacent tracks:
Water Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SobKHw72aBo
Mardi Gras Indians: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkBEpSNXGuw
Hank Sr.: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnKOVPXhlnE
Water Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SobKHw72aBo
Mardi Gras Indians: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkBEpSNXGuw
Hank Sr.: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnKOVPXhlnE
Sassafras leaves also make a great tea.
Plenty of online mentions of sassafras tea involve using the root, but using leaves seems to be less known. It’s much easier to make (just pick a few leaves) and the taste is much better than the root, especially with a spoonful of sugar added.
Plenty of online mentions of sassafras tea involve using the root, but using leaves seems to be less known. It’s much easier to make (just pick a few leaves) and the taste is much better than the root, especially with a spoonful of sugar added.
Finally, a Hackernews article I can share with my girlfriend, who is from Louisiana and very in touch with their culinary (and other cultural) traditions!
I remember reading that a lot of "soul food" and Southern poor-people / great depression food, like succotash, is native in origin.
Foodways can be really complex an interesting. In the case of the culinary traditions you're talking about, it was a collision between native, african, and european flavors and techniques.
Do be aware: sassafras has mild carcinogenic properties.
> Sassafras is classified as a carcinogenic substance. It caused liver cancer in laboratory animals. The risk of developing cancer increases with the amount consumed and duration of consumption.
https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs...
> Sassafras is classified as a carcinogenic substance. It caused liver cancer in laboratory animals. The risk of developing cancer increases with the amount consumed and duration of consumption.
https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs...
The active compound, the tasty AND toxic bit, is quite interesting. It binds to DNA and is also an MDMA precursor (ie safrole is on DEA watchlists)
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safrole
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safrole
While I understand that is true, sassafras is essential to a good root beer, and I will continue to brew mine that way. I've found no good substitute.
We can never be too certain of anything, but I believe that the carcinogenic claims are based on a faulty study from the 60s that was later largely disproven in the late 70s, but the FDA never changed their guidance. I don't have the drive to find the studies in question right now (sorry :( ), but I think it came down to the mice they tested having particular metabolizers that humans do not. That, and they gave them very high concentrated doses, because for some reason they were all about that method. I certainly don't ingest things that way :)
Barbecues are carcinogenic too.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/barbecue_cooking_risks
https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/barbecue_cooking_risks
Anyone have recs for a good place for gumbo that I can get through DoorDash in SF?
There was a place in Los Angeles that I went to once many years ago. It was great, but I don't remember the name.
There was a place in Los Angeles that I went to once many years ago. It was great, but I don't remember the name.
Here is my recipe. I don’t use any oil in the roux. Stock is from the shrimp heads, with file’ at the end.
https://youtu.be/hzzZJwKz5W0
https://youtu.be/hzzZJwKz5W0
File at the end is the best. It just gets lost otherwise.
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.