Anyone fancy a Gumbo?

Green Gumbo

The South American flavours are what make these Gumbo recipes work! It's a soup based recipe, easy to make and healthy to boot!

I have made a couple of Gumbo recipes so far this month. The first one was the Green Gumbo recipe from the #doctors_kitchen 3-2-1 book, which was a vegetarian option and just as satisfying as one that is made with seafood or chicken. The only change I would have made to this recipe, and this is for personal preference, is to use a mixture of spring greens and spinach, rather than just using all spring greens but to be honest you can use any vegetables that you like in these recipes, as long as you get the spicing right (Creole or Cajun), the dish will sing!

The second one was my own creation, again #vegetarian and #vegan but I used a tomato base as well as the traditional, holy trinity of celery, onions and peppers that are the base for all #gumborecipes. I also added some red kidney beans, although I think black beans or chickpeas would work well too.

I encourage you to give this a go when you feel you need a healthy but satisfying meal. Like I have said, its easy and will only take you about 15 minutes to prep and 25 minutes to cook - so an ideal meal for a delicious and healthy midweek meal.

(Recipe below the photos)

SERVES 4 PREP 15 MINS COOK 25 MINS

Ingredients:

2 tbsp of olive oil

4 stalks of celery, sliced finely

2 large peppers (any colour of your choice), deseeded and sliced finely

2 medium onions, diced finely

Other vegetables of your choice - I used mushrooms and sweetcorn (as I had these to use up)

4 garlic cloves, chopped or grated

1 tsp smoked paprika

2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp tomato puree

2 vegetable stock cubes

800ml boiling water

2 tbsp cornflour

Salt and pepper (to taste)

To Serve:

Sliced fresh chillies (optional)

Can be served with rice but it's a meal on its own too If I have a smaller portion for lunch, I often add some sliced avocados - delicious!

Method:

Heat the oil in a casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the celery, onions, garlic and peppers and fry for approximately 5 minutes.

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Add the oregano, paprika, cayenne pepper and stir in with the tomato puree. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper and then fry for another minute or two.

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Add any other vegetables that you are using and ensure that everything is well combined.

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Stir in the cornflour and crumble the stock cubes over the mixture then add the boiling water. Bring to a low simmer, cover and cook for 10-15 minutes until the sauce has thickened, stir occasionally.

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Enjoy!