Seafood Gumbo

Seafood Gumbo

This is my mother-in-laws recipe...and she was the finest cook of Cajun food that I have ever tasted!
Bon Appetit!!!

3/4 cup of All Purpose Flour
3/4 cup of corn or vegetable (NOT canola or peanut etc.)
2 pints of oysters (drained)
2 pounds of shrimp (peeled)
4 cans of lump crabmeat (drained)
1 onion (chopped)
1 bell pepper (chopped)
3 garlic cloves (chopped)
1 rib of celery (chopped)
File (sassafras grounded into a powder)
2 quarts of water
1 bunch of green onion tops (chopped)

Make a very dark roux with the oil and flour. (see Basic Roux recipe in Roux, Simple Cajun Recipes)

Add onions, bell pepper, garlic, and celery to roux and sauté until clear. Spoon this mixture into a gumbo pot and add 2 quarts of water and 2 tablespoons of Filé; stir.

Simmer about 1/2 hour. Add more water if gumbo is too thick. Add shrimp, oysters and crabmeat one hour before serving.

Add seasoning to your taste. Ladle gumbo over steamed rice in a soup bowl. Add onion tops and dust with Filé.