Okra-Free Gumbo

Inspired by an article from the Sunday New York Times, I thought I'd try to turn some of our abundance of greens into gumbo. This recipe sounded interesting, and uses lots of random greens instead of okra. I used spinach, bok choy and arugula. We didn't have collards, and threw out our turnip and beet greens last week, or I would have used them.

It was very good, but could have used a little thickener. I added some chicken stock, sausage and frozen shrimp to the base and served it over rice. I would try filé powder next time. We have 6 cups of the base frozen for future use.

I used some cajun seasoning mix instead of the paprika, cayenne, cloves and allspice, and green Tabasco instead of Pickapeppa sauce. the seasonings were about right, but there is a lot of room for playing with them.

Gumbo Zeb from The Passionate Vegetarian

Roux:
½ c mild vegetable oil
½ c unbleached all-purpose flour

Vegetable Saute:
4 T margarine
1 large onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
½ bunch celery with leaves, chopped
½ large bunch scallions, chopped

Seasoning Puree:
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 T Pickapeppa sauce
2 T tomato paste
2½ t Tabasco
1 t dried basil
1 t dried oregano
1 t dried thyme
½ t paprika
¼ t cayenne
¼ t ground allspice
¼ t ground cloves
3 to 4 good grinds of fresh black pepper
1 can (8 oz.) whole tomatoes, drained, coarsely choped, the juice and tomatoes reserved separately
½ bunch Italian parsley, leaves and stems, rinsed and coarsely chopped

Stock and Greens:
Cooking spray
3 c any well-flavored vegetable stock
1 c tomato juice or V8 juice
½ t salt
2 bay leaves
3 bunches assorted greens, well washed and cut into ribbons

Make the roux with the oil and flour: Pour the oil into a large skillet or pot. Turn the heat to medium and immediately whisk in the flour. Stir frequently as the roux changes color from white to yellow to fairly brown. While the roux cooks, proceed with the other steps, but be sure to keep an eye on it, stirring very frequently. Warning--this is a long, slow process requiring attention.

Prepare the vegetable saute: In a heavy cast-iron skillet, melt the margarine over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the bell pepper and celery, lower the heat slightly and continue sauteing for another 10 minutes. (Don't forget the roux--keep stirring it while the vegetables saute.) Add the scallions and saute until limp, about 5 minutes more.

Meanwhile, between the sauteing and the roux-stirring, you will have time to prepare the seasoning puree. Place all the ingredients for the seasoning puree except the tomatoes and parsley in a food processor. (Pause to stir both roux and vegetable saute.) Buzz the puree ingredients until the garlic is finely chopped.

Check the roux again, then add the tomatoes and parsley to the food processor. Chop coarsely.

Pause to take note of where you are, and go stir the roux and vegetable saute (By now you have three mixtures: the roux, the sauteed vegetables, and th spicy, chunky paste in the food processor.) When the vegetables have softened, remove from the heat and set them aside. Keep working on the roux until it has reached a nice toasty brown. It may be ready now, or it may take a little longer.

Now prepare the stock and greens into which the other three mixtures will eventually go. Spray a large soup pot with cooking spray. In it, bring to a boil the stock and 1 cup of tomato juice (from canned tomatoes). Add the salt and bay leaves. Drop in the fresh greens. Bring back to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered for about 30 minutes.

Stir the roux. By now it should be dark caramel brown, but if it isn't, continue to cook it, stirring. When the roux has browned, remove it from the heat nad let it cool for a few minutes. Drain off any excess oil that has separated out, but be sure to leave every bit of the browned flour. Vigorously whisk in the 1 cup tomato or V8 juice. It will be smooth and thick and a pale orange paste.

When the greens have finished their 30-minute simmer, remove them from the heat. To the stock pot, add the roux mixture, the vegetable saute, and the seasoning puree. Give a taste and adjust the seasoning, set the pot back on the stove, and let simmer over the lowest possible heat, covered, for 15 minutes. Stir often.

Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

(found here, with some typos corrected, but recipe referred to in the NY Times is in The Dairy Hollow House Soup and Bread by the same author)