A great vegetarian "gumbo" I made up once upon a time
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MzFury
Posts: 283 Member
Here (pasted from my recipe):
COMMENTS:
I invented this in college when I was studying anthropology and watching cooking shows. I was aiming for a dish that drew on American native and regional foods and cuisines, and that would provide such a rich depth of flavor and texture that meat would not be missed, and in fact would destroy the balance of this dish were it included. I wanted to make something that would almost parallel a gumbo in its satisfying dark, slow-cooked richness: I borrowed okra from that classic and added chipotles to counter the idea of dark roux and rich sausage. This one-dish meal is a delectable and balanced “college” supper that carries over to post-grad life, and freezes well…
PREPARATION NOTES:
PREP: 20 minutes + overnight soaking for beans
COOK: 2-3 hours
SERVES: 8-12
INGREDIENTS:
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 medium yellow onions, medium dice
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 medium carrots (or 2 large), cut in coins (about ¼”)
1 lb fresh chopped okra (1/2” coins), divided, or frozen okra, defrosted and drained
3 dried chipotle peppers, stemmed and chopped, half seeds retained or seeded to taste
1 tsp ground cumin
1.5 cups dried black beans, rinsed and soaked overnight and drained
1.5 cups dried pinto beans, rinsed and soaked overnight and drained (soak beans together)
1 28-oz can whole organic tomatoes, cut up in can, or can diced tomatoes – fire-roasted is good
water
1 cup long-grain brown rice, such as Texmati
2 medium yellow squash, or other seasonal squash like pattypan or chayote, sliced thinly
2 ears fresh corn cut from cobs, or one small bag frozen white corn, best quality
1 tsp salt
Juice of one lime
Garnish
1 bunch cilantro, chopped coarsely
Sliced or diced avocado, ¼ avocado per person
Thinly sliced or grated cheddar-style goat cheese, ½ - 1 oz per person
Lime slices – 1 per person
INSTRUCTIONS:
In a large soup or stock pot (at least 5 quarts), sauté onion in oil over medium heat till onions soften, about 3 minutes, then add garlic, carrots and ½ pound okra and allow to sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly, till okra and carrots begin to color a bit and smell nice. Add cumin and chopped chipotles and allow to heat for 30 seconds or so, stirring. Add drained beans, tomato and water to cover by about an inch and stir. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover and stir occasionally, adding water if necessary to keep contents just covered, for at least and hour and a half, until beans are cooked through. Add remaining okra and return to simmer. Add rice and one cup of water, return to simmer and cover for 30 minutes. Add salt and squash, stir through and return to simmer. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes, then add corn and lime juice, stir through, return to simmer and cook 2-5 minutes, or until corn is just heated through. Test for seasoning and add more salt if required.
To serve, garnish with thinly sliced cheese over each bowl, avocado, cilantro and a slice of lime.
FURTHER NOTES:
Cheddar-style goat cheese is very important in this recipe as the cheddar texture provides tooth and the goat cheese flavor amplifies the meatiness and smokiness of the chipotles.
You could add all the okra at the beginning, or add the last half closer to the end, but this is how I’ve evolved it, and I like the balance.
If you’d like to make this with canned beans, omit the 1.5 hours of simmering – simply bring to boil and reduce to simmer, adding the rice and 2 cups water at the same time and jumping ahead.
COMMENTS:
I invented this in college when I was studying anthropology and watching cooking shows. I was aiming for a dish that drew on American native and regional foods and cuisines, and that would provide such a rich depth of flavor and texture that meat would not be missed, and in fact would destroy the balance of this dish were it included. I wanted to make something that would almost parallel a gumbo in its satisfying dark, slow-cooked richness: I borrowed okra from that classic and added chipotles to counter the idea of dark roux and rich sausage. This one-dish meal is a delectable and balanced “college” supper that carries over to post-grad life, and freezes well…
PREPARATION NOTES:
PREP: 20 minutes + overnight soaking for beans
COOK: 2-3 hours
SERVES: 8-12
INGREDIENTS:
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 medium yellow onions, medium dice
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 medium carrots (or 2 large), cut in coins (about ¼”)
1 lb fresh chopped okra (1/2” coins), divided, or frozen okra, defrosted and drained
3 dried chipotle peppers, stemmed and chopped, half seeds retained or seeded to taste
1 tsp ground cumin
1.5 cups dried black beans, rinsed and soaked overnight and drained
1.5 cups dried pinto beans, rinsed and soaked overnight and drained (soak beans together)
1 28-oz can whole organic tomatoes, cut up in can, or can diced tomatoes – fire-roasted is good
water
1 cup long-grain brown rice, such as Texmati
2 medium yellow squash, or other seasonal squash like pattypan or chayote, sliced thinly
2 ears fresh corn cut from cobs, or one small bag frozen white corn, best quality
1 tsp salt
Juice of one lime
Garnish
1 bunch cilantro, chopped coarsely
Sliced or diced avocado, ¼ avocado per person
Thinly sliced or grated cheddar-style goat cheese, ½ - 1 oz per person
Lime slices – 1 per person
INSTRUCTIONS:
In a large soup or stock pot (at least 5 quarts), sauté onion in oil over medium heat till onions soften, about 3 minutes, then add garlic, carrots and ½ pound okra and allow to sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly, till okra and carrots begin to color a bit and smell nice. Add cumin and chopped chipotles and allow to heat for 30 seconds or so, stirring. Add drained beans, tomato and water to cover by about an inch and stir. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover and stir occasionally, adding water if necessary to keep contents just covered, for at least and hour and a half, until beans are cooked through. Add remaining okra and return to simmer. Add rice and one cup of water, return to simmer and cover for 30 minutes. Add salt and squash, stir through and return to simmer. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes, then add corn and lime juice, stir through, return to simmer and cook 2-5 minutes, or until corn is just heated through. Test for seasoning and add more salt if required.
To serve, garnish with thinly sliced cheese over each bowl, avocado, cilantro and a slice of lime.
FURTHER NOTES:
Cheddar-style goat cheese is very important in this recipe as the cheddar texture provides tooth and the goat cheese flavor amplifies the meatiness and smokiness of the chipotles.
You could add all the okra at the beginning, or add the last half closer to the end, but this is how I’ve evolved it, and I like the balance.
If you’d like to make this with canned beans, omit the 1.5 hours of simmering – simply bring to boil and reduce to simmer, adding the rice and 2 cups water at the same time and jumping ahead.
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