"The Rebirth of New Orleans” Triple Trinity Gumbo™
                                                              

 By Dr./Chef Jason Seidler Ph.D., B.A.

“With a Lagniappe”

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Additional “tip o’ the hat” sincere thanks go to Deputy Director & Compassionate Charity Volunteer Dana Hale and Stephen Sheldon for their Volusia County Library research and their culinary research with myself & other Christian volunteers.)

 

This recipe is dedicated to the memory of Antoine’s Restaurant Maitre D’ and Caregiver Clifton Lachney, who lost his life in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (his disabled son also died) and also TV Chef, Author & Restaurateur Emeril Lagasse, who has become a “one-man promotional machine” and is personally carrying New Orleans on his back to help save what is arguably the “Greatest Culinary & Music City in the World!”

 

At least it is for me!  Please visit Chef Emeril’s website at www.emerils.com and purchase a couple o’hundred of his products.  I really like his quart-size box of chicken stock.  I suppose his “Kick It Up!” and enthusiastic “Bam!” are trademarked, so I won’t mention them (’wink’).  He’s a wonderful, caring, talented, humorous, charismatic chef that has made cooking fun for millions who’d never ordinarily even pick up a spatula!  He also has a spectacular charity for children at Emeril.org called the Emeril Lagasse Foundation.  Please consider supporting it.  I also enjoy his new GREEN Pepper Sauce made from Jalapeño peppers.  I love mixing it with my favorite bottled BBQ sauce, molasses, and a few Chipotle peppers in Adobo sauce. It’s got some heat, but it’s more about special flavor!

Flavor!  That deserves pause for reflection.  Hmmmm....   That’s what needs to be

addressed.  Also this font size is too small…I think I’ll “Kick it Up a Notch”! (Oops!)

Flavor!  That’s indeed what needs to be addressed.  These are my suggestions HOW:

1. Use “stock” whenever possible instead of water in recipes. “Water your lawn, not your food!”

2. Cook with herbs.

3. Cook with spices.

4. Marinade your food.  Seafood, for example (I shall run with this one),

* I use an oil-based marinade for white fish to add flavor and maintain moistness.

* I’ll often use an acidic marinade…based on citrus juices or vinegar for oily fish to offset their richness (only for an hour or less, though, because it’ll actually start cooking the fish).

* A little wasabi powder (mind you, just a little.  It’s like Asian horseradish, and packs “heat”) adds considerable flavor.

* I frequently add thin slices of freshly-sliced ginger to my oil before shallow-frying or stir-frying seafood.

* I’ll sometimes add up to a teaspoon of sesame oil (no more…it’s pretty strong!) to the egg-wash I’ll use to coat fish.

* I’ve even been known (currently too) to use coconut before my parents had problems chewing.  I’ll dip pieces of monkfish or some other white, firm fish in a lightly beaten egg.  Then I’ll toss the pieces in freshly-grated coconut before frying.  This actually gives fish an unusual, “nutty-flavored” coating.  The same works with crushed pecans as coating.

* Mix your breading with dried herbs*, curry spices, or crushed, dried chilies.

* Cook with sauces.

* Adding citrus and herbs like *Italian parsley, chervil, rosemary, tarragon, lemongrass, dill…even cilantro inside of the cavity of whole fish before cooking, so their flavor penetrates the flesh of the fish.

* Bake with fennel.  When you bake a whole fish such as sea bass, arrange sliced fennel stalks in an even layer in an ovenproof dish, then lay your fish over it…you’ll notice a very unique subtle flavor.

* Cook with wine.  Again, cook with what you also like to drink.  I prefer a light, fruity white wine like a Rhine…although Chablis and even a Zinfandel will enhance seafood…especially clams & mussels.

* Cook with aromatics.  I suggest julienne strips of carrot, celery, onion, or leek.  I suggest some in a foil packet with the fish or scallops, or in the tradition of Antoine’s Restaurant (since 1840) “en papillote”, which is baked/steamed instead in a sealed pouch of culinary parchment paper.

* Broiling (Chef Emeril will tease us that it’s the oven knob that we never or rarely use…and he’s right!).  There’s a short, but very wide cooking appliance in the few professional kitchens I’ve had the honor of working in, and it was called a Salamander.  All it does is broil from above.  It was great for finishing seafood, and also melting cheese on a French Onion Soup.

* Poaching (just a little vinegar and/or Zatarain’s “Crab Boil” in the water too).

* Smoking/Barbecue (low & slow)

* Char-broiling/grilling (high heat & fast).  Please remember to clean the grill grates as well as to oil the fish.  Preheat the grill too!

* That’s it for seafood preparation methods from me…I’m “tapped out”. (Let’s put the bullets away!)

 Go to www.Penzeys.com to shop for a wide selection of herbs and spices that’ll be delivered right to your door, plus they have 7 different soup bases…which are very close and the next best thing to “homemade” stocks. Stocks are made from the classic “mirepoix”, which is 2 parts onion to 1 part each of carrot & celery.  Bones & scraps from a type of meat, shells of shrimp, crab & lobster with a Bouquet Garnis, plus a little parsley & thyme.

 Gumbos are a bit different in that the root vegetables are 2 parts onion to one part each of celery & green pepper, but instead of carrot, which would complete the classic French "mirepoix", the vegetable triligy is known in the Southeast as the "Holy Trinity" or "Trinity". This alchemy in the name of food preparation & “flavor” still has to be negotiated between the caregiver-recipient, his/her doctor, and nutritionist/dietician.  I suppose I should interject our board members' opinion with my own …with our belief here at CaregiverHelp.org™ Inc. that any “ties” or “stalemates” should go in the favor of the caregiver-recipient.

  “Life is too short to eat bad food and drink bad wine!”  And in their behalf, anyone who IS a caregiving-recipient probably has a lack of “quality of life”…with their culinary intake being a likely “highlight” of their day.

 Soooooo…when you can, MAKE IT HAPPEN for them!  Be considerate.  Show them love.

 

 Rather than margarine or a vegetable-oil-based “spread”, sometimes you gotta use “REAL BUTTER”...both in baking and savory dishes.  TV Food Network star and author Paula Deen whom I admire very much…likely wouldn’t approve; however, I prefer margarine to butter or olive oil when it comes to caramelizing vegetables.  Officially (“The Corporation”) suggests “Heart-Healthy Canola oil and Olive oil” (NOT Popeye’s girlfriend!)  Some recipes like desserts and chowders…even oatmeal will be horrible if made with skim milk when you know they’ll be more hearty and flavorful with “REAL cream”.  I personally drink 1% milk and use it in smoothies & shakes, but that’s the lowest lowfat milk that I can enjoy.  Skim milk still tastes to me like water that someone threw in a white crayon.

   This is a bit of a “labor-intensive” recipe for a caregiver to prepare, but generally, the caregiver-recipient is a “loved one”, and you’ll feel good preparing such an extravaganza for him/her, and “Hey, you’re not going anywhere anyway, so let’s do it”. Jason Seidler        

This is the story of two cities and two gumbos!

 

New Orleans (Story#1), perhaps the “Greatest City in the World”, was severely devastated due to the August 29th, 2005 visit from Hurricane Katrina.  Because of limited transportation options as well as a lack of “special needs” shelters, and also community shelters who would NOT allow pets, added to Disaster Declarations that were issued over an area of 90,000 square miles. New Orleans was hit the hardest after breached levees put the majority of the city underwater.

At an economic cost of more than $80 billion and causing more than 1,800 deaths in seven states, all remember the days following Hurricane Katrina. Just over a year later, the population of New Orleans is only half its pre-Katrina size. Remains of the dead were still being found eleven months after the storm, and approximately 700 people are still categorized as “missing”.

Chef Paul Prudhomme of K-Paul’s led the charge of bringing diners back into the French Quarter.  Many people including politicians wanted to just write the city off, but a TV Chef named Emeril Lagasse has tenaciously fought long and hard to bring this unique city back…becoming a “one-man PR machine”.  And the city and remaining residents have done a miraculous job joining in his crusade to once again make it the legendary city that it once was!  It was a short but deliciously fun Mardi Gras in 2006 & 2007, but we’re confident that it’ll be back to the usual “Grand Scale” in 2008.

* New Orleans (Story#2) is now once again a wonderful destination to visit any time of the year…it needn’t be Mardi Gras.

* It was even a popular city before the United States became a country!  There are many, many festivals and special events throughout the year…especially the “New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival” (end of April-Early May).  The wonderful multi-cultural ‘heritage’ music, arts, and food is what I believe makes New Orleans unique, and that why I used the ‘old-style’ font for in the title of this recipe.  The history and the ‘heritage’ of this great city made it imperative that it’s rebuilt while retaining its unique charm, culture, and ethnic diversity.  And it’s celebrated every day!


The French Quarter Festival is a free three-day party in the French Quarter in late April. There's music in the streets, an area for kids behind the St. Louis Cathedral and the largest jazz brunch in the world. (Only in New Orleans…a party & festival before THE “Party & Festival”!)

* Food: There are two areas for food. Jackson Square is lined with food booths from everything from crawfish pasta to alligator sausage. There's also a line of food booths in Woldenberg Park.

* Music: Ten stages are set up in Woldenberg Park, on Royal and Bourbon Street and at the old Mint at the edge of the French Quarter. Music ranges from country to Zydeco to blues to classic Dixieland to rock to jazz.

And Hey!  If you’ve ever been in Europe, you will notice a strikingly similarity in the architecture between New Orleans (particularly the French Quarter) and the smaller streets of Europe. It’s sort of a “Disney World for adults”. new orleans hotelWhere else can you be walking down the street during the day and musicians play their music inside and outside of bars, pubs, restaurants, and invite you to come sing, chat, drink, and eat with them.

There are once again many fine hotels to stay at when you visit New Orleans.

* But perhaps the best way to get the city to come back to what it was…is to go visit it if you never have.  And if you already have...the second time is always better!  Or for me, the 11th…looking very much forward my 12th!!

* Feel free, though, to also visit the beautiful beach & racing events here in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Sorry, Emeril, but we’re finally rebuilt after hurricanes too!)

* OK, we’re finally going to get to the recipe…so here we go again!

“The Rebirth of New Orleans” Triple Trinity Gumbo™

By Jason Seidler

“With a Lagniappe”

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Additional “tip o’ the hat” sincere thanks go to Deputy Director & Compassionate Charity Volunteer Josh Tyndal for his Volusia County Library research and his culinary research with myself & other Christian volunteers.)

 

National Breast Cancer Foundation
   

The Breast Cancer Site
Protect women's health
   

The Child Health Site
Protect children's health

This recipe is dedicated to the memory of Antoine’s Restaurant Maitre D’ and Caregiver Clifton Lachney, who lost his life in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (his disabled son also died) and also TV Chef, Author & Restaurateur Emeril Lagasse, who has become a “one-man promotional machine” and is personally carrying New Orleans on his back to help save what is arguably the “Greatest Culinary & Music City in the World!”

Gumbo #1.  Seafood Gumbo

The “Triple Trinity” refers to:

Ø     1) The basic vegetable start of onion, celery, and green pepper called the “Holy Trinity”.

Ø     2) The 2nd “Trinity” refers to the three seafood items native to Louisiana that I include…shrimp, crabmeat, and crawfish tailmeat (you made want to add or substitute oysters…even a firm fish like Redfish or Grouper) cooked after making.  This isn’t as much a recipe as much that it is indeed dozens, if not hundreds, of recipes.

Ø     3)  The 3rd “Trinity” refers to the meats in the next gumbo...smoked Tasso ham (a smoked ham shank will do), Andouille sausage (or Eckrich has a “skinless” smoked sausage), and either chicken, duck, or rabbit.  There are so many different ways to make this dish, and it is made in so many different ways by so many Louisiana cooks and chefs….that it's almost futile to list just one recipe here.  I'm going to list a couple for this particular situation, but I want you readers to know that by no means that these are ‘definitive’. They're good gumbos, and good places to start off. As you learn more about Creole cuisine, feel free to experiment with different combinations of seafood, roux or no roux, filé or no filé, okra or no okra, tomatoes or no tomatoes (I like tomatoes in my gumbo... but lots of Louisianans don’t).  Just remember that it’s really difficult to have a good seafood gumbo without a good seafood stock.  Clam juice helps, but it’s no REAL substitute for a shrimp stock, lobster stock, or fish stock.

Remember to use a non-reactive pot for any gumbo (or any dish, for that matter) that that includes okra or tomatoes, as they’ll probably discolor.

Please do NOT use imitation crabmeat like “surimi”, in any gumbo or other crab dishes.  If you try that in Louisiana, you perhaps will face a stern lecture or possibly even worse. If you try it pretty much anywhere...I won’t know, but YOU will.  I won’t be responsible for you if the “Crab Police” come into your dreams and haunt you, and then you may find yourself being slowly devoured by dull-toothed alligators.

Don’t take that chance!  Use REAL crabs or REAL lump crabmeat.  Also please take the time to ask for REAL American Wild Shrimp when dining out, and request & seek it when shopping for shrimp for gumbo or any dish that requires shrimp!
You may omit the okra if you like, and it will STILL be a gumbo (contrary to many opinions) and thicken the gumbo with filé powder (ground sassafras) instead…it'll still be good, but will have a significantly different flavor.  Many folks will put filé powder on the finished product or “on the side” (like Emeril).  I found that Chef Emeril is wise in this maneuver because gumbo with filé will often NOT taste as appealing when re-heated.
#1 Seafood Gumbo

Ingredients

Ø     ¼ cup butter

Ø     ½ cup flour

Ø     ¼ cup Canola oil (to help the butter have a    higher “smoke point”)

Ø     1 tsp molasses

Ø     1 tsp cayenne pepper

Ø     2 small red onions or 1 large, finely chopped

Ø     1 rib celery, finely chopped

Ø     ½ red, yellow , orange, or even a green bell pepper, finely chopped (a combo can be visually appealing)

Ø     3 cloves garlic, minced

Ø     3 bay leaves

Ø     1 tsp of ground thyme

Ø     1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Ø     1 quart shrimp stock, crab stock, seafood stock or water with Penzey’s Seafood Base, but the “secret ingredient” to making the “best” seafood gumbo for your loved ones is as much FRESH Oyster Liquor/Oyster Juice as you can get your hands on!  Hull’s Seafood here in Daytona Beach has helped me a few times.

Ø     ½ pound raw shrimp, peeled and deveined with tails removed

Ø     ½ pound crawfish tailmeat OR ½ pound fish fillets, such as redfish or another firm-fleshed fish, cut into pieces

Ø     ½ pound fresh crab to be inserted early or ½ pound of cooked, lump crabmeat to insert at the very end to warm up before serving

Ø     2 Tbsp chopped parsley

Ø     1 quart shrimp stock or fish stock

Ø     ¼ bunch green onions, chopped

Ø     1 teaspoon of Emeril’s “Essence” PLUS an additional pinch to throw at the 6 bowls in dramatic Emeril “Bam” form in front of your caregiver-recipient and/or for other guests!

Melt butter with the canola oil in a large saucepan and whisk in flour until smooth. Cook over medium-to-medium-high heat (listen to Emeril, USE YOUR KNOB!) stirring constantly, until it is a peanut butter color, about 15 minutes.  If you need to provide services for your caregiver-recipient, by all means do it, BUT ALWAYS TAKE THE ROUX OFF THE STOVETOP!  If you burn or scorch it, it’ll be nasty!  You just have to stand with’em and keep whisking or stirring with a wooden spoon.

Add onions, celery, bell pepper, the garlic 3 minutes later and bay leaves and cook until vegetables are very soft, about 8 minutes.

Add stock and whisk to combine. Bring to a boil, skim surface, and reduce heat to a simmer.

Add crabs and cook for 1 1/2 hours, until thickened and flavorful…or lump crab in the last 2-3 minutes just to warm up.  If your gumbo seems too thick, thin with water or preferably seafood stock.

Add shrimp and crawfish/fish and cook until shrimp turns pink and fish is cooked through.  PLEASE DON’T OVERCOOK the seafood whenever possible.

Add oyster liquor, parsley, and green onions, and just in case if you’re substituting oysters,

Cook until edges of oysters curl, about 5 to7 minutes.

Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary, and wait until the 2nd gumbo is ready.  Then serve in large bowls as a combination over hot white rice garnished with scallions with a side of crusty French bread and filé powder.

*       And for the chewing-impaired, one should:

1.  Select & move some crabmeat and seafood gumbo liquid to the “containment vessel” of your choice, and then by breaking out the “boat motor”, as Chef Emeril fondly calls his immersion blender, or using a traditional Cuisinart/Kitchen Aid-style food processor, and puree to the consistency that your loved one will enjoy, then pour into a small custard cup, ramekin, or teacup.

2.  Select & move some shrimp with the same seafood gumbo liquid & repeat the procedure, but this one gets a little red seafood cocktail sauce.

3.  Select & move some of just the 3rd seafood ingredient whether it’s crawfish tailmeat, oysters, or fish, along with some of the gumbo.  Then puree it like the others and put it in the 3rd custard cup, ramekin, or teacup. The 2nd Trilogy presented.

4.   Select & move a meat…chicken, duck, or rabbit, and repeat step #1 by pureeing it with gumbo liquid, then present in 4th custard cup, ramekin, or teacup.

5.   Repeat #4 with #5 Tasso Ham or Smoked Ham shanks.

6.   Complete the “Triple Trinity” with #6 Andouille or other smoked sausage pureed in final custard cup, ramekin, or teacup. The 3rd Trilogy presented.

 

In a large, heavy pot, heat the oil and add the flour. Stir constantly until a light brown roux (say a Jif or Peter Pan Peanut Butter color) is formed, then add the onions, bell pepper, celery and garlic. Sauté until the onions become translucent and the vegetables are tender. Add the tomatoes and tomato purée, if you wish, and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. (I know I sound like a broken record, but I'm one of those people who like tomatoes in gumbo, but some people don’t.)

Add the seasonings, and about 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper, and continue to cook another 10 minutes. Add the okra, and cook for another 10 minutes, then add the stock. Bring to a brief boil, then reduce your heat to a “simmer”, then cook for another 20 minutes.

If you don't like okra, or if you just prefer to make a filé gumbo, remove from heat and sprinkle the filé powder on the surface of the gumbo, then cover and let stand for 15 minutes. Then uncover and stir to mix. Be careful if there are leftovers -- filé doesn't reheat all that well, and you must be careful to reheat gently. If the gumbo comes back to a boil after the filé has been added, it will get stringy.

For those who CAN chew, place about 1/2 to 2/3 cup of rice in each bowl and ladle the gumbo over and around it. Serve with plenty of French bread (I like garlic bread) and good beer (consider Dixie or Turbo Dog) or white wine. Melt butter with the canola oil in a large saucepan and whisk in flour until smooth. Cook over medium-to-medium-high heat (listen to Emeril, USE YOUR KNOB!) stirring constantly, until it is a peanut butter color, about 15 minutes.

Add onions, celery, bell pepper, the garlic 2 minutes later and bay leaves and cook until vegetables are very soft, about 8 minutes.

Add stock and whisk to combine. Bring to a boil, skim surface, and reduce heat to a simmer.

Add crabs and cook for 1 1/2 hours, until thickened and flavorful…or lump crab in the last 2-3 minutes just to warm up.  If your gumbo seems too thick, thin with water or preferably seafood stock.

1.  Add shrimp and crawfish/fish and cook until shrimp turns pink and fish is cooked through.  PLEASE DON’T OVERCOOK the seafood whenever possible.

2.  Add oyster liquor, parsley, and green onions, and if you’re substituting oysters,

3.  Cook until edges of oysters curl, about 5 to7 minutes.

4.  Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary, and serve in large bowls over hot white rice.

5.  And for the chewing impaired, see 1-6 custard cups, ramekins, or teacups above.

 

Gumbo#2. The Meat Gumbo

The roux for this gumbo is the same amount of canola oil to flour in any proportion; however, the roux should be stirred over medium to medium high heat for even longer…until it gets to a dark chocolate brown.  I like Chef Emeril’s analogy…”For about the time it takes to drink 2 beers” he would say.

 

*The premise behind this presentation to give your caregiver-recipient 6 DIFFERENT-FLAVORED special “mini-servings” of 2 Gumbos by using a Cuisinart, blender, or my favorite, an immersion blender, which Chef Emeril Lagasse affectionately calls “The Boat Motor”.  You take out some crawfish with a slotted spoon and a couple of tablespoons of gumbo broth and pulse to the texture that your caregiver-recipient can both stand and ENJOY!  Do the same with duck or chicken with the gumbo broth, and the same with shrimp and gumbo broth, etc.

 

Ingredients

    * ½ cup flour
    * ½  cup Canola oil
    * ¼ cup sliced okra
    * 2 cans of Hunt’s Diced Tomatoes (14.5oz with the 1st Trinity…celery, onions, and green peppers)
    * 1 tsp Florida Orange Blossom honey (It's fine to use your Clover honey in your bear!)
    * ½ tsp cayenne pepper
    * 1 tsp of Adobo sauce that chipotle peppers come in. Add one or 2 if you and your caregiver-recipient likes the heat. pepper, finely chopped (a combo can be visually appealing)
    * 3 cloves garlic, minced (I like pre-roasting it in your oven with some Extra Virgin Olive Oil packed in a tin foil packet for home or on the grill.
    * 1 quart of Pork Stock (Good luck finding it at Piggly Wiggly’s, Kroger’s, Publix, Ralph’s, Winn-Dixie, Marsh, or ANY supermarkets).
    * 2 bay leaves
    * ½ pound of chicken, duck, or rabbit meat
    * ½ pound of Andouille sausage or Eckrich “skinless” smoked sausage in ¼ inch slices
    * ½ pound Tasso Ham or smoked ham shank
    * 1 Tbsp `Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

This one is more fun, just keep stirring the roux until it’s chocolate brown, then just toss everything in…wait 3 minutes on the garlic though…It can often get bitter if you cook it as long as the trinity veggies.   Skimming fat from gumbo isn’t always easy, so I often sautéed’ the sausage in olive oil in a skillet on the side. Simmer for a couple of hours.  Puree each of the meats with some of the liquid.

        
For the chewing-impaired, it should be served in the final 3 of the six custard cups, ramekins, or teacups…just for the differences in flavor for the caregiving-recipient to enjoy.  The rest of America is welcome to serve it in 2 bowls or mix into one. Enjoy!  Remember to buy a couple of hundred of Chef Emeril Lagasse’s “There’s a Chef in My World”.   I'm sure they'll make great Holiday gifts! Jason Seidler