This delightful Seafood Gumbo is full of shrimp and crab and it has a nice spicy kick. There’s nothing like a warm bowl of gumbo, and I especially like a seafood gumbo.
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Making a big pot of gumbo is a little labor intensive, but it lasts for days and only gets better with time. It’s perfect for a lazy afternoon spent at home. Build a nice fire in the fireplace and put your biggest pot on the stove.
The most time-consuming part and the most important part is making the roux. It is a process that should not be rushed. It forms the base of the flavor and you really want to take the time and develop a deep, robust flavor. Making roux can take some practice. Turn the heat up too high and it will burn and you will have to start again.
In addition to shrimp and crab, this Seafood Gumbo is also flavored with the Holy Trinity- (onions, bell pepper, and celery), lots of garlic, a bottle of beer, thyme, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce, and lots of Cajun seasoning. Plus there’s a pound of andouille sausage for some meatiness.
Equipment Needed
- 6 to 7-quart Dutch Oven– It’s important to use a Dutch oven with a thick, heavy bottom so the roux doesn’t burn. This Dutch Oven is perfect.
- Fine-Meshed Sieve– for straining the shrimp stock. This set of 3 strainers is very useful in the kitchen.
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Seafood Gumbo
Ingredients
- 2 pounds unpeeled fresh large shrimp
- 1/2 cup butter, divided
- 2 (32-ounce) cartons chicken broth
- 1 pound andouille sausage, sliced
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups finely chopped yellow onion
- 1 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
- 1 cup finely chopped celery
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 (12-ounce) bottle amber beer
- 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 cup green onion tops
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 pound lump crabmeat
- Cooked rice for serving
Instructions
- Peel and devein shrimp, placing shrimp shells in a large pot. Refrigerate shrimp until needed.
- In a large pot, melt 1/4 cup butter over medium heat. Add shrimp shells and cook until pink. Then add broth.
- Bring broth to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat and keep warm until needed.
- In a large Dutch oven, cook sausage until browned. Remove sausage with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Add oil and remaining 1/4 cup butter to Dutch oven. Heat over medium heat until butter is completely melted.
- Add flour and stir with wooden spoon until smooth.
- Reduce heat to medium low and cook, stirring frequently until roux is a dark caramel color. This will take 30 to 40 minutes.
- Add onion and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add green pepper and celery and cook for 5 more minutes, stirring often.
- Add garlic and cook 1 minute.
- Add beer and stir in well.
- Pour shrimp stock through a fine-meshed sieve into Dutch oven. (I like to add it in 3 separate additions, mixing well between additions.
- Add Cajun seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, and bay leaves, plus the reserved andouille sausage. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
- Add green onions, parsley, and shrimp. When shrimp are pink, remove from heat and stir in crabmeat.
- Serve with white rice.
Notes
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Absolutely incredible! I have made this several times and it always comes out GREAT! However, don’t be afraid to add your own sea food to this dish. I like clams, mussels, scallops and white fish added with mine. This receipt is fabulous as written, but it is also a great base for adding your own…..”imagination” .
Is there a video recipe for this???
Absolutely delicious!!! As said in a previous comment, it is labor intensive but it is well worth the wait. Followed the instructions to the T. Thank you for sharing. I will make this again soon 😁😁
First attempt at making seafood gumbo and it came out perfect. The best ever! Takes a lot of time but it’s worth it.
I premade dark roux. It’s in the frig. Will be there for a week or so till the guests come in. When making the gumbo,
do I sautee the triliogy, then add it to the roux since it’s made already. Do I heat up the chicken stock then add the roux with trilogy into the warm stock till it’s the consistency I want? Then of course the shrimp and sausage…Is this the way to do it?
so what did you end up doing and did it work. I had been wondering the same thing
can you can gumbo
Yes we jar it’s in quart jars in the freezer!!!
My wife and I are excited to try this today but the directions are extremely vague. Do you add the onions, peppers, and garlic to the roux or to the shells that are still simmering? When do you remove the shells from the stock mixture? Kinda winging it
You add the veggies and garlic to the roux once it gets dark carameled color. As the veggies cook, your roux will get darker so take that into consideration. Dark roux, mmmmm good! Then after veggies are cooked you start adding the strained broth into the roux.
I have always loved Gumbo in a restaurant and tried this for the first time for the family. Big hit, very glad I tried it and will continue to use the recipe
I added okra, too. This gumbo tastes very much like the seafood gumbo my mama used to make in New Orleans. I used shrimp & scallops (instead of the crab) and it was delicious! I’ll be making this recipe again <3
Bay leaf can cause severe internal issues if ingested. Recipe needs instructing for removing bay leaves. For those unfamiliar with bay leaves, they are for seasoning while cooking and need removed prior to serving.
Removing bay leaves is probably assumed. I know I personally didn’t think about them, because I’ve grown up knowing you don’t eat them. It’s kind of like giving directions and there is a round a bout on the route. You don’t leave instructions on what to do at the round a bout, you assume the driver knows what to do because they did their own research learning how to drive. Part of cooking is learning what to do with certain things. I mean you can search bay leaves just like you probably did this recipe.
Who finds a recipe and double searches each ingredient to check the health risks? Her comment was helpful. Especially for someone who’s never cooked with bay leaves.
Never cooked with bay leaves before. Wasn’t aware they could cause harm. I appreciate her letting us know. Thank you!
Can it be a “gumbo” without okra???
In fact, the word gumbo means okra…
Just sayin’…
Exactly my thoughts! Been making seafood gumbo for almost 40 years. Never once made it with out the “gumbo”!
My first gumbo attempt. Too much oil for my liking. Layer of oil sat on top. Flavor was bland. Looked nice as my roux was a dark chocolate color. Took me an hour! Next time halving the oil and adding more Cajun seasoning.
You will not be able to make a roux if you don’t use equal parts flour and fat. I skim the fat off the top before adding shrimp. With this recipe I removed two-thirds cup fat. Homemade chicken stock will make a more flavorful gumbo.
Overall it was a little too salty, but that’s probably because my cajun seasoning was primarily celery salt (Old Bay). Regardless, I haven’t had gumbo this good since visiting New Orleans! This will be my new go-to recipe. It took me over an hour to get the roux a dark caramel color (cooked on medium-low in a dutch oven), but it was worth the labor. Next time I’ll use low-sodium chicken broth and make my own cajun seasoning without salt.
Old Bay is definitely not Cajun/Creole seasoning! Get you some Slap Ya Momma or Tony’s next time.
Thank Slap Ya Momma is everything
Very yummy. Added more Cajun seasoning, chicken broth, and some salt, but other than that it was great! Ran low on liquid, so the extra chicken broth helped.
What is meant when you say “Add shrimp shells and cook until pink.” are you referring to the shell of there shrimp, if so, when do you discard the shells?
An you tell me when you added scallops. Did you pre cook first?
I pre cooked my scallops
Made this but added okra, file and lots of different seafood (scallops,, shelled clams & mussels, etc), double Cajun seasoning, and 2 tbsp hot paprika! Best gumbo recipe ever, making it again tomorrow, and sharing recipe with all the sisters and daughters in law!
Made it tonight and it was really good . I did add okra since I love okra in my gumbo . I’ve never made gumbo before … apparently .. a hit ! I used “ slap ‘yo mama” Cajun seasoning And a bottle of the beer I had on hand .. which was a Michelob ultra .. definitely making this again . A recipe to keep !
Gumbo literally means “okra” so it’s a must. Also, ditch the beer. Don’t “bro” the dish up unless your recreating a gumbo-Ish dish. Great otherwise..
Sounds good minus beer plus file. Making Sunday with crab still in shell scallops and shrimp and sausage….and corn on cob..yum
This was absolutely the best seafood gumbo I’ve ever had. Thank you for the recipe.
Note: Just added a touch of lemon to the shrimp once served and used fresh scallops instead of the crab meat.
OH MY BLOG! This looks absolutely stunning and authentic! I can’t wait to try this recipe!