Tabasco Classic - Eula Maes Cajun Seafood Gumbo Recipe

How to make it

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• Eula Mae Dore is a legend on Avery Island. She retired as proprietor of the Tabasco deli, where she served bowls of her hot gumbo, wonderful sandwiches and salads to the workers who dropped in for lunch.
• Heat 1/4 cup of the oil in a large skillet (not cast iron) over medium heat and add the okra. Cook, stirring frequently, until it is no longer ropy, about 30 minutes. Add the vinegar and cook, stirring, for another 10 minutes, until the okra takes on a brownish color and is reduced to about a quarter of its original volume. Put the okra in a medium bowl and set aside.
• In a large stockpot over high heat, bring the broth to a boil. Meanwhile, add the remaining 1/4 cup oil and the ham to the skillet. Saute the ham over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes, or until it is lightly browned.
• With a slotted spoon, remove the ham to the stockpot. In the same skillet, combine the onions, celery, garlic and pepper; cook, stirring constantly, for 10 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. Add the vegetables, okra and tomatoes to the stockpot; cover and simmer over medium heat for 1 hour.
• Reduce the heat to very low, add the shrimp and simmer very slowly for 10 minutes. Add the crabmeat and Tabasco sauce; simmer for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. Serve the gumbo in soup bowls with scoops of rice.
• Eula Mae Dore, Tabasco Deli, Avery Island, Louisiana. A Tabasco Classic Recipe.
• Note: Louisiana likes to think of itself as a sovereign state and it is steeped in tradition from the melding of French, Spanish and American history. It was a part of the Louisiana Purchase and became a slave state until the emancipation proclamation and the collapse of the Confederacy. Because of it's tidal flooded bayou and Mississippi River bottom lands it was one of the early producers of rice. The Negros, brought to Louisiana as slaves, brought with them a host of influence to what is known as "Good Ole Louisiana Soul Food" that has help blossom into two of the United States greatest cuisines; the Cajun and the Creole. They brought the seeds from Africa, to plant the okra, that became a necessary ingredient in the Cajun dish that bears its name...Gumbo.
• Avery Island is located South of New Orleans on the Misssissippi Delta. The Tabasco Hot Sauce is grown, aged , bottled and shipped from Avery Island to our tables. It is a world class hot sauce and has become a part of Cajun and Creole Cuisines. I have collected two recipes from this place, called Tabasco Classic recipes. The are: Tabasco Classic - Eula Mae's Cajun Seafood Gumbo and Tabasco Classic - Mama Blue's Shrimp Patties. I offer them for your enjoyment.