The trick to making this melody perfect is to saute it in either butter or olive oil (depending on the dish) on a low heat.

When cooking most Cajun dishes, it’s all about the flavors it begins usually with our Cajun Holy trinity melody of SAUTEED onions, bell pepper and celery. Also have chopped parsley and chopped green onions available to add to individual bowls OR sprinkle it on the top of your gumbo. Serve gumbo cooked white over rice in an bowl.Once the shrimp are cooked, you are ready to eat!.Add shrimp about 10 minutes before serving.Add 1 tablespoon of Kitchen Bouquet for coloring.Reduce the heat to medium low, continuing to allow the gumbo to simmer.Allow the gumbo to simmer for about 30 minutes. Stir well until all the ingredients are mixed well together.Heat on medium-high heat until mixture is heated (not boiling).Add the seafood stock listed above slowly.Saute till the vegetables are transparent and soft on medium heat. In a gumbo pot add the chopped onions, bell pepper, garlic and celery.Add Rotel Tomatoes (including the juice) and continue cooking for another 15 minutes.ĭirections For the Cajun Shrimp and Okra gumbo.Then Add the uncooked chopped okra to the bacon drippings and saute down for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.3 lb small shrimp, peeled and de-veined.2 cans Rotel Diced Tomatoes with Chilis.Ingredients For Making Cajun Shrimp and Okra Gumbo: The most popular cajun gumbos are c hicken and sausage gumbo, shrimp gumbo, seafood gumbo and shimp okra gumbo. It is not uncommon to add the smothered okra directly over white rice as another kind of dish or just as a vegetable side! I usually smother the okra in bacon grease prior to adding it to the gumbo and boy does that make the okra pop with flavor.

Okra serves two purposes for taste and as a thickener. Smothered down to the point the okra comes totally apart, it removes most of the slimy stuff. In the Cajun gumbo, the okra is smothered down prior to adding it to the gumbo. The creole gumbo has chunks of okra and the other vegetables are cut larger and they are crunchy. The primary difference in both variations of Shrimp and Okra gumbos is the texture and the creole gumbo one has more tomatoes. I can’t lie… My little Aunt Sharlette, helped me remember the recipe so that it was just right she makes this same recipe today exactly and perfectly like Grand Ma Cottin. When she passed, my mother kept the traditional going with the same recipe. I personally never made Okra gumbo for the simple fact that Grand Ma Cottins gumbo was the best… seriously. Then specifically, you didn’t eat my Grand Ma Cottin’s Okra Gumbo. So if you’ve been to New Orleans and said you ate gumbo, you didn’t eat a good Cajun Shrimp and Okra gumbo. There is a big difference between how each gumbo looks and also how they taste. There are basically two variations of Cajun Shrimp and Okra gumbo the Cajun Shrimp and Okra kind and the creole Shrimp and Okra kind.