Gumbo Cajun Favorite

I believe that if a meal is cooked too fast that the love was not in it. I know there’s people that do not like cooking and don’t like gumbo. I am not one of them. There are people that don’t even know about gumbo, but I do—and here is my recipe and my relationship with this famous food.

Nowadays, everyone wants to be a cook, but not everyone is gifted to cook. Some people do not have a history of cooking; others are just too busy to concentrate and put the love and dedication it takes to make a magnificent meal. My mother took her time and made her roux from scratch; me on the other hand, I purchased my roux. It's a big difference. My roux tastes different because it was pre-packaged. There are some individuals that I met who refuse to eat other people's gumbo because they’re so addicted to their mother's and grandmother's gumbos. I tried many gumbos, but I do truly like my own. My secret ingredient is definitely the okra.

I love cooking. I also love food. One of my mother's and my favorite dishes to prepare is Cajun Style Gumbo. It’s amazing to be a part of the Louisiana culture. We grew up near Louisiana and near Texas. Currently, I live in Houston Texas. Cajun-style cooking reminds me of home—no matter where I am, if there’s gumbo, it’s nostalgic. It was to my surprised that some people don’t even know about gumbo. Gumbo is the Louisiana favorite in my home and my extended family's home as well. I haven’t had anyone that tried my gumbo that didn’t like it.

There’s different recipes and different roux with already prepared packages of the mixes, so I decided to use both the mix and the roux. I had purchased it in a jar and a Louisiana package mix. The method I used made for a more rich and authentic taste. However, my mother, grandmother, and family members make their own roux from scratch using flour as the base. My mom used to love cooking Saturday night so we could have a meal after church on Sunday. I remember going to sleep smelling the aroma of the roux.

For this particular dish, I purchased fresh ingredients. Purchasing fresh vegetables for the dishes makes the dish taste amazing. Boneless chicken was chosen because it's better for children and aging adults with dental issues. Mine is like an okra stew, a little thick. I also enjoy a Cajun Creole and I also like to cook Cajun fish. 🐠 Some people like it regularly with a side of potato salad. These people like to eat it as suit-and-soup and dip crackers in it. Left for me, I like to eat mine with white rice. I’ve took a liking to aged Indian rice made by a regal company. My recipe for the gumbo is below:

• 1 pack okra
• 1 can sweet corn
• 1 pack boneless chicken thighs/texjoy seasoning
• 1 pack shrimp
• 1 pack venison Sausage (Holmes brand)
• 4 small soups of savoxies roux
• 1/2 a half a pack of Louisiana gumbo mix
• large bunch of celery
• half an onion
• 3 bell peppers
• 1 red pepper
• 5 dashes of cayenne
• 2 dashes of texjoy steak seasoning
• sweet corn 🌽 (I chose frozen)
• and garlic

The rice is served with the dish. I prepared the rice in a rice cooker (Indian Bismati aged rice).

I typically do two packs of chicken and two packs of okra, but didn’t want too much leftovers.