Gumbo () is a stew that is popular among the U.S. Gulf Coast community, the New Orleans stew variation being the official state cuisine of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Gumbo consists primarily of a strongly flavored stock, meat or shellfish (or sometimes both), a thickener, and the Creole "holy trinity": celery, bell peppers, and onions. Gumbo is often categorized by the type of thickener used, whether okra or filé powder (dried and ground sassafras leaves). Gumbo can be made with or without okra or filé powder.
The preferred method in the historical New Orleans variation is with a French-inspired dark, even chocolate-like, roux. The flavors of the dish have origins in many cultures. Creole gumbo generally contains shellfish and a dark roux, filé, or both. Cajun gumbo is generally based on a dark roux and is made with shellfish or fowl. Sausage or ham is often added to gumbos of either variety. After the base is prepared, vegetables are cooked down, and then meat is added. The dish simmers for a minimum of three hours, with shellfish and some spices added near the end. If desired, filé powder is added after the pot is removed from heat. Gumbo is traditionally served with rice. A third, lesser-known variety, the meatless gumbo z'herbes, is essentially a gumbo of slow-cooked greens.
The dish combines ingredients and culinary practices of several cultures, including Central and West African, French, German, Spanish, and Native American Choctaw. Gumbo may have been partially based on the French dish bouillabaisse, West African okra stew or Choctaw stew. Most likely all of these dishes contributed to the original recipe. It was first described in 1802, and was listed in various cookbooks in the latter half of the 19th century. The dish gained more widespread popularity in the 1970s, after the United States Senate dining room added it to the menu in honor of Louisiana Senator Allen Ellender. The popularity of chef Paul Prudhomme in the 1980s spurred further interest in the dish.
Etymology
The name of the dish comes most likely from Africa, by way of Louisiana French. Scholars and chefs have offered various explanations for the etymology of the word "gumbo". The dish was likely named after one of its two main ingredients, okra or filé. According to linguists, "gumbo" has multiple origins. The other origin is the system of Bantu languages spoken by many enslaved people from Central Africa. The vegetable okra was known as or in Kimbundu; Some linguists also assert that sassafras were also referred to as komho, while filé were called kombo,
Variations
Gumbo is a heavily seasoned stew that combines several varieties of meat or seafood with a sauce or gravy. Tomatoes are sometimes used in seafood gumbo, but traditionally few other vegetables are included. Roux can be used alone or in conjunction with either of the other thickeners. Okra is more often used as a thickener in seafood gumbos than those with meat. made from cooking together a roughly equal proportion of flour and fat (traditionally hog lard, although increasingly made with butter since the mid-20th century). The length of cooking time determines the final flavor and texture, since the longer the roux is cooked before being added to the gumbo, the darker it becomes and the less thickening power it retains. A very dark roux provides a much thinner sauce with a more intense flavor than a light roux.
thumb|right|Creole seafood gumbo
Gumbo is usually identified by its dark roux, This variety combined varied greens – typically including turnips, mustard greens, and spinach. The greens were cooked to mush and strained through a sieve to produce a thick green liquid. Preparation for this variety of gumbo was time-consuming, and as Lenten restrictions have relaxed, the dish has become less popular. In modern times, ham or crabmeat is occasionally added to this type of gumbo. It has similarities to the French dish potage aux herbes ("soup with greens"), as well as to the Afro-Caribbean callaloo. In the 18th and 19th centuries, people from these cultures lived within a fairly small area with minimal mobility. In this environment, cultures could influence each other and combine to create new traditions and cuisine.