Okra & Shrimp Gumbo with Crab Paste

Mymy Suajico – Santiago 蔡马安

Gumbo is the official cuisine of the state of Louisiana. It typically consists of the trio branded in Cajun cuisine as the “Holy Trinity” which are celery, onion & bell peppers.

A gumbo recipe is generally categorized as to the thickener used: the African vegetable Okra, the Choctaw spice filé powder, or roux, the French base made of flour and fat.

This recipe is a Seafood Creole Gumbo, most popular in New Orleans. I have incorporated an Asian twist of using crab paste to enhance the ‘seafood’ flavor and opted to use Sriracha (Korean Chili spice) than cayenne pepper.

Ingredients:

1 pounds                              shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 cup                                      Extra Virgin Olive oil

4 cups                                    sliced okra

2 cups                                    thinly sliced onions

1 cup                                      chopped celery

1 cup                                      chopped bell pepper

1/4 cup                                  diced garlic

2 quarts                                 shellfish stock (shrimp)

1 quart                                   tomato sauce

1 cup                                      chopped tomato

2 tbsp.                                    crab paste

                                                Sriracha for spice (or Cayenne)

                                                Salt & pepper to taste

Garnish with chopped celery leaves

Procedure:

Heat EVOO in a pan. Drop in onions and garlic to caramelize
Spoon in crab paste & blend
Add chopped tomatoes, celery & bell Pepper  
Mix in Okra and cover to cook for 2 minutes or until slimy & sticky (that’s how Okras should be)
Incorporate Shrimp,shrimp stock, tomato sauce, salt, pepper & sriracha, simmer for another 2 minutes & serve over hot steamed rice.

Nice with light beer or sangria!