Sample Tips from Our New Orleans Style Cookbooks

Each of our cookbooks is loaded with hundreds of fun cooking tips, alone worth the price of each book. Here are some samples...

From La Bonne Cuisine...

For Soups and Gumbos...

When making Gumbo, okra or filé is used as a thickening agent. Filé is the powder obtained from ground sassafras leaves which was first used by the Indians of the New Orleans region. If okra is used, it is added according to the recipe instructions, and cooked. When filé is used, it is NEVER cooked. It is added at the last minute before serving and the gumbo must never be brought to a boil again. Another way of using filé is to have it on the table, letting each person add it to the gumbo. This means the pot of gumbo not used may be frozen or reheated easily.

Following the above instruction for use, okra and filé may be substituted interchangeable for each other. The substitution proportions are approximately 1 pound of okra is equal to 1 tablespoon filé. Since filé is difficult to obtain outside of the new Orleans region, feel free to substitute okra. Do experiment with the filé. It is a unique taste.

What's "Roux"?

"First you make a Roux" - this phrase is repeated in almost all Creole and Cajun recipes. A Roux is a mixture of fat and flour, cooked together until the flour has turned an even, nut-brown color. It is important that the Roux be cooked in a heavy pot, slowly and evenly. If the flour is burned, it will not thicken the sauce. It will also impart an unpleasant taste.

Accepted methods of making a Roux call for equal parts of flour and fat (oil, bacon grease shortening, butter, or margarine). For an ordinary sauce (such as gumbo, daube, grillades, etc.) bacon grease or oil is used. For more delicately favored dishes (poultry, fish, and eggs), butter or margarine is usually preferred.

In a heavy saucepan, melt the butter, or slightly heat the oil, over low heat. Stir in the flour. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until a rich brown Roux is formed (about 20 to 25 minutes).

Roux may be made ahead and refrigerated or frozen tightly covered, for long periods of time.

For Breads...

For perfect bread it is important to let the dough rise exactly the right amount. To test, press your finger into the dough. If the imprint remains, the dough is ready.

For Vegetables...

Vegetables that grow underground, i.e. beets, potatoes, carrots should start cooking in cold water; conversely, those that grow above ground, i.e. corn, peas, beans should start cooking in boiling water.

Did You Know...

Potato flour is an excellent thickener for soups.

To skim fat from soup quickly, dip a lettuce leaf in soup. The lettuce will pick up the fat.

To clean spinach, add 4 tablespoons of salt to each gallon of water, soak the greens a few minutes and rinse them well. Shake off the excess water and refrigerate to crisp.

When frying seafood, the seafood and the batter must both be cold and the oil extremely hot. This prevents the batter from becoming saturated with grease. Cook only a few pieces at a time.

And a handy Glossary...