Seafood Gumbo

Prep • Chop celery, bell pepper, onion, and garlic (can rough chop if you like these larger) • Prepare seafood and sausage; peel and de-vein shrimp, cube fish (check for bones and cut out bloodline), clean crab meat if needed, wash oysters, wash scallops, slice sausage into 1/4 in rings, keep your seafood cold until you are ready to add to the pot Cooking • Sauté celery, bell pepper, onions, in olive oil (stir frequently, may take ~ 15-20 minutes – should start to soften) • Add garlic, bay leaves, oregano, and parsley and sauté for another 3 or 4 minutes • Add tomato sauce, rotel tomatoes (including liquid), stewed tomatoes (strained), okra, and 2 cups of water (water to keep from burning on bottom – maybe up to a quart depending on single vs double recipe, you want to keep it pretty thick so don't add too much liquid, seafood will add liquid as well) • Season to taste with Tony’s • Simmer until okra has cooked down (mucilage/ocra slime will break down) – probably 30-45 minutes • Add all seafood and meat (except shrimp and scallops) and beer (will look thick but let cook down – as long as it doesn’t burn on bottom, will need to stir semi frequently to avoid this) • Simmer maybe 45 minutes to an hour, crab and fish will break down, may take a while to bring to simmer temp – watch for burning on bottom • Skim fats from the sausage off of the top - there will be a lot and I like to get as much out as possible. You may also elect to precook your sausage to get some of the fat out before adding to the gumbo pot • And last, add shrimp and scallops and bring to boil. Cook until shrimp are done. Add some fish or crab meat at this step also if you want these to be present in form. Will generally be very thick – not so soupy. • Once served, sprinkle lightly with gumbo filé • Serve over rice if desired • Freezes excellent • You’ll need a big pot - I use a 24 qt for a double recipe (for a party I make a double recipe) • Goes without saying that with this much seafood, very fresh seafood is key, otherwise gumbo may taste fishy • There are some optional ingredients (e.g. oysters, crab claws, etc) but good crab meat and scallops are key to the flavor profile Please leave your comments on how this turns out for you and any tips or tricks you used to make this even better.