Louisiana Creole · Soups & stews

Louisiana seafood gumbo

Name: Louisiana seafood gumbo
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 1 h 20 min
Total time: 2 h
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Louisiana Creole
Ingredients: 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, shells reserved; 6 cups low-sodium seafood stock; 1/2 cup neutral oil; 1/2 cup all-purpose flour; 1 large yellow onion, diced; 1 green bell pepper, diced; 3 celery ribs, diced; 5 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 12 ounces sliced okra, fresh or frozen; 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes; 2 bay leaves; 1 teaspoon dried thyme; 1 teaspoon smoked paprika; 1/2 teaspoon cayenne, or less to taste; 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper; 8 ounces lump crabmeat, picked over for shell; 8 ounces shucked oysters with their liquor; 1 teaspoon filé powder, optional; 4 scallions, thinly sliced; Cooked white rice and lemon wedges, for serving

Shrimp, crab, and oysters folded into an okra-thickened, medium-roux gumbo with tomatoes, the Louisiana trinity, and seafood stock.

About 2 hrTotal

About 2 hrActive

$$$Cost

AdvancedDifficulty

Makes 8 servings

Equipment

Use a hot sheet pan under an inverted oven-safe metal bowl for the covered phase.
Best value covered pot
Lodge Essential Enamel 6-Quart Dutch Oven · EC6D43
View at Amazon
Another workable path: Use a hot sheet pan under an inverted oven-safe metal bowl for the covered phase.
Paid links. As an Amazon Associate, Kwilt earns from qualifying purchases.
How we chose
Research-backed · reviewed Aug 2026
We matched capacity, lid fit, oven rating, heat retention, maneuverability, care, stable model identity, and usefulness outside bread baking. Kwilt has not baked with this pot.
Lodge Essential Enamel 6-Quart Dutch Oven · EC6D43: The six-quart capacity, heavy cast-iron body, and fitted lid create the enclosed high-heat environment used by these bread methods while remaining useful beyond baking. Trade-off: At more than thirteen pounds it is demanding to move when hot, and the enamel needs gentler utensils and hand washing.
Another workable path: Bake on a preheated heavy sheet pan under an inverted oven-safe metal bowl, keeping face and hands clear when removing the hot cover.
Sources
Lodge six-quart Essential Enamel specifications
Amazon exact product listing

Ingredients

1× recipe · Makes 8 servings

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, shells reserved
6 cups low-sodium seafood stock
1/2 cup neutral oil
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
3 celery ribs, diced
5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
12 ounces sliced okra, fresh or frozen
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne, or less to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
8 ounces lump crabmeat, picked over for shell
8 ounces shucked oysters with their liquor
1 teaspoon filé powder, optional
4 scallions, thinly sliced
Cooked white rice and lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

Simmer reserved shrimp shells in seafood stock for 15 minutes, then strain and keep the stock warm; discard shells. Pat shrimp dry and refrigerate with crab and oysters until needed.
In a , whisk oil and flour over medium to medium-low heat for 18 to 25 minutes, stirring continuously, until the roux is a uniform copper or peanut-butter brown. Do not take this seafood roux as dark as the chicken gumbo.
Stir in onion, bell pepper, and celery and cook 6 minutes. Add garlic and okra and cook 5 minutes until the okra's stringiness subsides. Add tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme, paprika, cayenne, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper.
Slowly whisk in warm shrimp stock and oyster liquor. Simmer partially covered 35 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the okra and roux create a lightly thickened broth. Taste and add remaining salt only as needed.
Add shrimp and oysters and simmer gently 3 minutes. Fold in crab and warm 2 minutes more; shrimp should be opaque and 145°F and oysters curled at the edges. Remove from heat, discard bay leaves, and add optional filé. Serve with rice, scallions, and lemon.

LouisianaGulf South · United States

From the table

About this recipe

Seafood gumbo is a distinct Louisiana pot whose lighter copper roux, okra, shell stock, shrimp, crab, and oysters protect the clean taste and brief cookery of Gulf seafood.

Seafood gumbo reflects Louisiana Creole and Gulf Coast abundance and often uses a lighter roux than chicken-and-sausage gumbo so shellfish remains audible. Okra, whose West African name helped give gumbo its name, supplies both history and body. This is the batch's special-occasion project: it requires three seafoods, shell inspection, a roux, and precise late cooking, and it is labeled accordingly rather than sold as easy. This Kwilt version follows the reviewed household adaptation: Treat this as the batch's one disclosed project, use Louisiana and local New Orleans evidence, and distinguish it from chicken gumbo through medium roux, okra, tomato, shell stock, and strictly late seafood.

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