All About That Roux

There is one thing about my beloved southland that holds true; we know how to eat. We like our food well seasoned and prepared with love. We typically make enough to feed more than our own family and we don't mind sharing with our neighbors. Food and fellowship go together like biscuits and gravy. I wouldn't have it any other way. There is a place in the deep south, however, that takes food and fellowship to another level. Yes, we have biscuits and gravy. Yes, we have chicken fried steak. Yes, we like our fried fish. But here in Louisiana, it's all about that Roux. A roux is real simple to make, but it's not the simple ingrediants that make it special...it's the patience to get it just right.

How a roux turns out is up to the one making it. A roux can be light in color or dark like chocolate. Once you get the consistency and color you want, you can season it up to make it even more interesting. Here is a simple recipe to follow. Enjoy!

1 1/2 cups of sifted flour
olive oil

(Yep, that's it)

Cover the bottom of a heavy pot with olive oil. After the olive oil is well heated over a low fire, add the flour. Cook the flour very slowly, stirring almost constantly. (Cook for about 45 minutes). The flour must be browned to a very dark brown, nearly black, but not actually burned.

This takes more time than you might think is necessary, but a good roux must be cooked slowly to get all the floury taste out of it and to insure uniformity of color.

Now if you want to, after you have made the basic roux, you can add a small can of tomato paste, stirring it constantly until the roux has reached the color of the flour before the paste was added. Then add a small can of tomato sauce, stirring this into the mixture until it all turns dark brown again. You can also add onion, pepper, and celery. As always, add your favorite hot sauce. Throw some shrimp, crawfish, chicken, sausage, whatever you want in there. Add water slowly, stir it to the desired consistency. There you go!

Have fun!

Photo courtesy of texasbowhunter.com