Veggie Gumbo
2 cups fresh okra - sliced
1 red bell pepper - in strips
1 green or yellow bell pepper - in strips
2 large portabella mushrooms - cubed
1 onion - diced
1-2 stalks celery - cut up
4 cloves garlic - minced
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 cup vegetable stock (vegetable bullion cube dissolved in water OK)
1 bay leaf
1/8 teaspoon (or more) cayenne
1/4 teaspoon (or more) crushed red pepper flakes
salt and cracked black pepper to taste
1tablespoon Gumbo File powder
olive oil
In a large, deep skillet (I use a 14 cast iron one) saute onion, peppers okra in small amount of olive oil. Add mushrooms, garlic, and celery after 5 min or so and saute a bit longer. Add crushed tomatoes, stock, and spices EXCEPT file powder. Simmer 10-15 minutes or so. Right before serving, fish out bay leaf, adjust seasonings, and stir in Gumbo File. Serve in deep bowls over brown rice.
This is VERY delicious and much less complicated than it may seem.
SO HOW'D IT GO?
This was very yummy. I made my own roux and added veggie sausages. This is definitely a keeper.:)
*Just a little note on what "Roux" is from a Bahamian perspective.* I'm from the Bahamas and we have a roux that is the basis of our stews, but when we make "stew" (which in our culture is a seasoned, thickened brown gravy) it is made from fat (choice of: oil, bacon fat, salt pork fat, lard, ham fat), white flour, salt & pepper, "bird" pepper or "goat" pepper depending on how spicy you like it; to which onions, sweet pepper, bottled tomatoes (which is homemade) and tomato paste or ketchup - depending on which island you're from and potatoes- are stirred into along with a sauce we use called browning sauce from Kitchen Bouquet, which is essentially burnt sugar or caramel (really, really dark and thick). To this we add lightly fried fish or conch (which is traditional), or to the newer generation poultry, or to the very few vegetarians among us - vegetables. Bahamian stew is very different from Western-stew and may have some relationship to the cajun gumbo (since some islanders add okra). We use rouxs AND okra to thicken our stews, sometimes one or the other, sometimes both, but the okra has to cook down very well to break down some of it's slimy consistency. For those who are vegan/vegetarian, you can stew veggies with awesome results. I'll post an "All-Veggie Bahamian(ized) Stew" on this site. ;)