Joan Fontaine's Creole Fish Gumbo

By William Norwich

Total Time
2 hours
Rating
3(19)
Comments
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Featured in: Entertaining; Elsa on My Mind

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Ingredients

Yield:10 servings

    For the Stock

    • 21¼-pound lobsters
    • 1pound shrimp, in shells
    • 1large carrot, chopped
    • 2stalks celery, chopped
    • 1onion, peeled and chopped
    • 1bay leaf
    • 1teaspoon peppercorns
    • Parsley sprigs
    • 128-ounce can whole plum tomatoes, drained

    For the Gumbo, Part 1

    • 2slices bacon
    • 2stalks celery, chopped
    • 2cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
    • 2red onions, peeled and chopped
    • 1green pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
    • 1tablespoon parsley, chopped

    For the Gumbo, Part 2

    • 1pound halibut, cut in 1-inch chunks
    • ¼cup olive oil
    • ½cup tomato paste
    • ½cup white wine
    • 1tablespoon sugar
    • Pinch of saffron
    • 2tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
    • 2teaspoons Tabasco
    • 1tablespoon gumbo file
    • ½teaspoon cayenne
    • Juice of 2 lemons
    • 2cups okra (frozen is O.K.)
    • 1pint clams (canned is O.K.)
    • ½pound crabmeat, picked over and cartilage removed
Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Put the lobsters in 2 quarts of cold salted water in a large stockpot and bring to a boil for about 5 minutes. (The whole procedure should take 15 minutes.) Add the shrimp and cook for 4 minutes more. Take pot off burner. Remove the shrimp shells and lobster shells and heads and put them back into the pot with the water they were boiled in. Save the shellfish for later.

  2. Step 2

    Add the rest of the stock ingredients to the pot with the shells. Simmer uncovered for 40 minutes. Strain the liquid through a sieve into a large bowl; then put stock back into the pot. Discard the shells and vegetables.

  3. Step 3

    To make the gumbo, fry the bacon. When done, crumble and leave it in the skillet with the fat. Add the remaining ingredients listed in gumbo Part 1 and saute until brown, about 7 minutes.

  4. Step 4

    Add the halibut and olive oil to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes, or until the fish is done. Add this mixture to the pot with the stock. Add the remaining ingredients from gumbo Part 2. Cover and simmer over low heat until well blended, about 1 hour. Can be served with rice.

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Ratings

3 out of 5
19 user ratings
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Comments

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Matthew C.

Seeing that the Super Bowl in 2025 is in New Orleans, I decided to make this for the game. I got gulf shrimp to try to keep it authentic. I cooked the night before, as I think gumbos, soups, stews taste better the next day. My modifications were no lobster, no crab, no saffron. Double the shrimp. I used cod instead of halibut, and chopped clams. I substituted pancetta for bacon. I used a German Riesling wine; added some thyme sprigs to the stock. Served over basmati rice. Very enjoyable. 4/5

chrisann

I don’t see anywhere in the recipe that you add the shrimp and lobster meat back into the gumbo. Does save for later mean for another recipe?

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