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Dried Shrimp and Egg Gumbo

One of the most exciting parts about working on this blog is the opportunity it gives me to make some of the strange gumbo recipes I’ve been looking at in my cookbooks for years. A dried shrimp and boiled egg gumbo? Who in the world am I going to make this for? Who would eat it? Mr. Ex-Husband actually liked dried shrimp—he and his fishing buddies in Louisiana used to eat it by the handfuls after trips out to the rigolets (pronounced rig-o-lees)—but even he was skeptical about the gumbo that Chef Prudhomme claimed his family ate once a month. But now I “have” to try all these recipes. Lucky for me, I’ve got an adventurous group of friends. Especially in Bob and Catfish, they’ll try anything at least once!

It’s kind of funny to think of Mr. Ex-Husband on a boat while also thinking about my dear friends Bob Shacochis and Catfish Petersen. Bob found out about Ms. Mistress before I did. The admission came out in a rush from a freaked out Mr. Ex the moment he got into Bob’s truck to go fishing the morning of April 11. Something to the extent of, “I’ve been having an affair, we got caught, she’s driving down from up north to meet me.” Bob, like the brave and brutally honest man that he is, stopped the truck before it was even fully out of the driveway and suggested that Mr. Ex get his ass back in the house, wake up his wife, and explain what was happening. Now, the story of his reply has changed a bit over time, and whether it’s been to spare my feelings or evoke a spiteful laugh from the much stronger woman I am now, the versions are still not good. He either said, “I just can’t,” or, “It’s the last 8 hours of freedom I’ll get and I want to enjoy it.”

While they fished and enjoyed some beautiful weather, Catfish comforted me and advised me on how to proceed (tell Emily you can have two vodka drinks, but no more! You don’t want to be drunk when he gets home…). She also helped spy, getting in touch with Bob to let me know when they were off the water and when they would be back in Tallahassee, as all of my frantic texts and phone calls went unanswered.

And then, when I felt like I no longer had a home, they offered me theirs. And then when I changed my mind and decided I wanted to be surrounded by my own things and try to maintain a semblance of normalcy in my work routine, they offered me the option to decide whether or not it would be okay for Mr. Ex to stay with them.

They were always very clear: they loved both of us very much. Yes, they were disappointed in Mr. Ex, in how he had handled the situation, in the way things were happening, but they still loved him and wouldn’t cut him out of their lives. They still loved me, too, and were always prepared to be there for me.

One of the scariest things about breaking up is the fear of how your life afterwards will look. Who will you lose in the divorce? Bob and Catfish showed me how to handle it. Their honesty and openness taught me how to accept friends who still wanted to maintain a friendship with Mr. Ex. I’m not sure I would’ve understood how to do that without them—I might have cut off everyone who was still willing to answer his calls or emails. And that would’ve been such a huge loss for me, as well as an unfair thing to do to my friends. Losing your other (I mean, I don’t think I can call him “better”) half is traumatic enough. Losing their family, who eventually become like your own, is hard. But being able to keep your friends is such a gift. Mine are so cool they even let me use their kitchen when I need a change of scenery.

Dried Shrimp and Egg Gumbo

1 cup finely chopped Onions

1 cup finely chopped Green Bell Peppers

1/2 cup finely chopped Celery

Seasoning Mix:

3 whole Bay Leaves

1 teaspoon Salt

1 teaspoon Red Pepper (Cayenne)

3/4 teaspoon White Pepper

1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper

2/3 cup Vegetable Oil

2/3 cup all-purpose Flour

2 (1 1/2-ounce) packages Dried Shrimp, or 3/4 cup

7 cups Seafood Stock

1 teaspoon Minced Garlic

9 whole Hard-boiled Eggs, peeled

Hot Cooked Rice

Combine the onions, bell peppers, and celery in a bowl and set aside. In a small bowl, combine the seasoning mix ingredients and set aside.

Make a roux: In a large heavy skillet heat the oil over medium high heat until it gets very hot, about 5 minutes. Gradually add the flour, whisking constantly until smooth. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the roux is a red-brown. (For seafood, especially for shrimp, I usually go for a "red" roux. A black roux is appropriate for darker meats. Sometimes, depending on the seafood, I make the roux out of butter instead of oil. It's just a lighter, sweeter flavor, which compliments the delicate flavors of crab and oyster especially. Because this is dried shrimp, and so the shrimpy flavor is very strong, I went with the suggested oil roux.) It'll take about 20 minutes. If you're feeling courageous, though, feel free to turn the heat up and cook it faster. Chef Prudhomme suggests cooking on high heat for about 5 minutes. When it's reached the desired color, add the vegetables and remove from heat, stirring continuously.

Check out my roux-making video here!

Put the burner back on medium high heat and cook the vegetables until soft, about 2 minutes. Add the seasoning mix and cook for about 2 more minutes. Stir in the shrimp and cook for another 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the stock and garlic in a 4-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil. Gradually add the shrimp mixture and stir until the roux is dissolved between each addition. Return to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until shrimp are cooked and flavors married, about 20 minutes.

Add 6 of the whole hard-boiled eggs to the gumbo; cut the remaining 3 eggs in half and add. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil; then remove from heat and let sit 10 minutes. Skim oil from top and serve immediately.

To serve, place 1/4 cup of rice in each serving bowl; add 1 whole egg and 1 half egg to each. Spoon about 1 cup gumbo over the top. It's especially great with a nice-sized dollop of Potato Salad on the side (or even in the bowl). Find a recipe for amazing potato salad at the On the Side page of the website (www.roux-the-day.com).