# Okra is prime right now, which means it's gumbo time **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [August 3, 2025, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668 "2025-08-03T17:57:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/21 "2025-08-04T14:15:41Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Well, if you want to get _really_ traditional, roux is originally French, which typically used butter as the fat, I believe. Well, of course I know that, but I’m talking in context. I see that you commented before I inserted “(at least for Cajun/Creole)” cuz I knew I was asking for a nitpick. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/22 "2025-08-04T14:21:19Z")
> [@solost](#): > > It calls for adding ‘File’ (powdered sassafrass leaves) to the gumbo at the end of the cooking process to thicken it. Yeah, there are generally three types of gumbo: 1. Okra-thickened 2. File-thickened 3. Roux-thickened Despite some misconceptions, gumbo does not have to have okra in it. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/23 "2025-08-04T14:21:22Z")
Well, you expressed skepticism that butter would work at all in a Cajun roux: > [@pulykamell](#): > > Not sure about butter. It seems like it would burn quite easy in dark Cajun roux. I’ve made plenty of dark rouxs with butter, and they seemed to turn out just fine, but who knows, maybe I’ve been burning my roux this whole time and didn’t know it. I’m not nitpicking, I’m just trying to fight ignorance-- mine as much as anybody’s! ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/24 "2025-08-04T14:22:43Z")
> [@solost](#): > > I’ve made plenty of dark rouxs with butter, and they seemed to turn out just fine, but who knows, maybe I’ve been burning my roux this whole time and didn’t know it. You are more brave than I am. Do you do your roux over high heat? I tend to go hot and fast rather than slow and patient, so I know I’d burn my butter right quick, though I slow down when I get to the peanut butter stage. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/25 "2025-08-04T14:25:49Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Do you do your roux over high heat? I tend to go hot and fast rather than slow and patient Yep, I go hot and fast as well, stirring constantly. Sometimes with an old penny nearby as a color cue for when to stop 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/26 "2025-08-04T14:29:17Z")
Interesting. Still probably too rich for my blood to use all that butter. 🙂 I looked through a couple more books: Paul Prudhomme’s _Louisiana Kitchen_ uses oil and flour in his gumbos, and looking through _The New Orleans Restaurant Cookbook_, from 1967, all the various roux bases there from historical NO restaurants all seem to be flour and shortening. I guess any fat should work. ETA: Oh, cool. My Donald Link book, _Real Cajun_, has a specific note about it: > [@](#): > > Oil or butter roux? > > My rule of thumb for when to use butter (and not oil) for a roux depends on how dark I want the final results to be. Gumbo, for example, requires a very dark roux, and oil is preferred; butter makes a dark roux bitter. For a light peanut-butter-colored roux like this one, butter is better because it adds a rich nutty taste to the soup. (Some étouffées are made with a butter roux for the same reason.) Dark rouxs are more about using oil as a medium to brown the flour; light rouxs are more about adding a rich, nutty flavor for the dish. This was a note under the recipe for “Cathy’s Shrimp, Corn, and Tomato Stew” for full context. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/27 "2025-08-04T15:39:05Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Gumbo, for example, requires a very dark roux, and oil is preferred; butter makes a dark roux bitter. For a light peanut-butter-colored roux like this one, butter is better because it adds a rich nutty taste to the soup. Hmm…it’s possible I’m not making my roux dark enough, because I would have thought peanut butter colored roux to be a roux on the dark side, not a ‘light’ roux. What oil is best to make a good dark roux then? I usually use peanut oil in high-heat situations, but peanut oil doesn’t sound right for a gumbo roux. I wouldn’t want to use shortening since it’s a hydrogenated oil. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/28 "2025-08-04T15:51:41Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Hmm…it’s possible I’m not making my roux dark enough, because I would have thought peanut butter colored roux to be a roux on the dark side, not a ‘light’ roux. Well, I think he’s saying the roux is “light peanut-butter-colored,” so on the light side of peanut butter roux, not “light, peanut-butter-colored” saying that peanut butter rouxs are light. [![](https://scontent-ord5-3.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/474565637_942144768021436_5745877016521424487_n.jpg?_nc_cat=110&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=833d8c&_nc_ohc=tZ2HpKR0X3IQ7kNvwEtMGzR&_nc_oc=AdlQv1-bOzAlrPVXPHY9TSl5jlYgOdyraOEMJyGzs1FoM85HHZa2Ia_26_w2NU895VY&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-ord5-3.xx&_nc_gid=oczYhfa6UaXN3CeZzRbNtA&oh=00_AfXMhIiDMPrev20IkXo2HHYRy1RT-wfbsdZP6s4muDgQUg&oe=68969FB3) ](https://scontent-ord5-3.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/474565637_942144768021436_5745877016521424487_n.jpg?_nc_cat=110&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=833d8c&_nc_ohc=tZ2HpKR0X3IQ7kNvwEtMGzR&_nc_oc=AdlQv1-bOzAlrPVXPHY9TSl5jlYgOdyraOEMJyGzs1FoM85HHZa2Ia_26_w2NU895VY&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-ord5-3.xx&_nc_gid=oczYhfa6UaXN3CeZzRbNtA&oh=00_AfXMhIiDMPrev20IkXo2HHYRy1RT-wfbsdZP6s4muDgQUg&oe=68969FB3) Peanut-butter is toward the blond roux there. Chocolate and dark chocolate rouxs are quite dark. Oh, here’s a cooler chart: [![](https://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2023/10/attachment-the-9-stages-of-roux.jpg?w=526&h=526&q=75) ](https://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2023/10/attachment-the-9-stages-of-roux.jpg?w=526&h=526&q=75) ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/29 "2025-08-04T15:57:48Z")
Ok, yeah, I’ve never gone darker than the color of an old penny, which would be considered ‘light brown’ on that spoon chart. I’ve never gone to that shade of ‘dark brown’. So what type of oil should I use to get a ‘dark brown’ roux like the one on the spoon chart? As I said upthread… > [@solost](#): > > I usually use peanut oil in high-heat situations, but peanut oil doesn’t sound right for a gumbo roux. I wouldn’t want to use shortening since it’s a hydrogenated oil. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/30 "2025-08-04T15:59:27Z")
I use vegetable oil. I also use okra on top of my roux. There’s no “purity” in Gumbo to violate - pretty much the whole point of Gumbo is that you can put anything in it. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/31 "2025-08-04T16:00:05Z")
I use whatever oil I have around. Peanut would be fine; I use sunflower oil since I’m a sunflower oil house. I don’t think it matters all that much. Online I see mentions of vegetable or canola oil. Just don’t use like extra virgin olive oil or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/32 "2025-08-04T16:01:59Z")
> [@solost](#): > > My understanding is that adding tomatoes is Creole-style, no tomatoes is Cajun-style. That’s what I learned when I took cooking classes in New Orleans. The teacher was Cajun. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/33 "2025-08-04T16:04:40Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > I use vegetable oil. > [@pulykamell](#): > > I use whatever oil I have around. Peanut would be fine; I use sunflower oil since I’m a sunflower oil house. Thanks! I’m a peanut oil house, since I do a lot of stir-frying. Next time I make a gumbo I’ll try making a dark roux with peanut oil. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/34 "2025-08-04T16:04:45Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Traditionally it was animal fat and flour, I believe (at least for Cajun/Creole). Then it changed to oil or even vegetable shortening. Not sure about butter. It seems like it would burn quite easy in dark Cajun roux. Yeah, I learned using oil and flour. I’m guessing you could have some luck using ghee, but I wouldn’t try it with regular butter. ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2025, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/35 "2025-08-04T16:22:58Z")
Shrimp, celery, and bell peppers purchased, and some prep dicing work will take place in a few minutes, as soon as I’ve rested after shopping and drunk an iced tea. It’s funny: Mr. brown _detests_ celery, green pepper, and okra, but he’s okay with them in a gumbo. I dice them all on the fine side and that seems to make them all a bit more acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2025, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/36 "2025-08-05T13:31:25Z")
My gumbo came out brilliantly. I think it’s the best I ever made. I think it’s because I took care to get flavorful wild-caught white prawns and super-fresh prime okra. And we have leftovers for dinner tonight! ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2025, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668/37 "2025-08-05T13:47:26Z")
Leftover gumbo is even better the next day! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okra-is-prime-right-now-which-means-its-gumbo-time/1021668.md?page=1)