Gumbo Des Herbes

Gumbo des herbes (gumbo z’herbes) is the green gumbo of Cajun Louisiana, traditionally made during Lent with as many greens as you can get your hands on. This version uses seven: mustard greens, collards, turnip greens, watercress, beet tops, carrot tops, spinach, plus lettuce and cabbage. Each one adds a different layer of bitterness, earthiness, or peppery bite.

The greens get boiled until tender, then pureed and folded back into the pot with smoked ham, brisket, stew meat, smoked sausage, and spicy chaurice. The roux here is built from the chaurice drippings and flour, so it carries all that rendered sausage fat and flavor right into the base.

File powder goes in at the very end, off the heat. Stirring it into boiling liquid turns it stringy and slimy instead of silky.

Chef Tips

• Wash the greens three times in cold water to get all the grit out. Sand in your gumbo ruins everything.
• Save the green cooking liquid. It’s full of flavor and nutrients, and it becomes the stock for the whole pot. Don’t dump it down the drain.
• The chaurice drippings are your roux fat. If you can’t find chaurice, use a spicy Creole sausage or andouille and render the fat separately.
• File powder thickens and flavors, but only works off the heat. Add it last and serve immediately.

Variations

• Make it vegetarian by dropping the meats and using vegetable stock. The greens are robust enough to carry the dish on their own.
• Swap watercress and beet tops for chard or kale, depending on what’s at the market.