Re: pressure cookers was Re: Need recommendations on security

"User"
| >
| > | In French, etouffee means to "braise" but in Cajun Country it means to
| > | "smother". The late Justin Wilson was probably one of the foremost
| > | authorities on etouffee. Attending a half dozen or so of his "picnics"
| > | in Tickfaw, La. were memories not soon forgotten.
| >
| > Wilson came late to the party of being an official Cajun and was
originally
| > a 'safty' engineer for Esso back before it became EXXON. While an
excellent
| > cook he was not considered an authority by the locals.  As example he
was
| > heavy on the use of wine in his cooking something that was not common
with
| > the bayou cooks.  BTW his house in French Settlement was at most 5 miles
| > from our place in Prairieville.
| >
| > While our families were acquainted we did not socialize with him and his
| > much as he was mean enough sober and much less sociable when drinking.
| > (Early on he effected a cane, not for support but because it was heavy
...
| > weighted with lead)
| >
| > | An etouffee remains an etouffee until you add tomatoes, after which it
| > | becomes a "stew" according to most "purists".
| >
| > The best modern review, both of the history and the makings, of Cajun
| > cooking is the Richard Collins Cook Book.  The hard copy went out of
press
| > in the 70s and is very hard to fine. (We have several signed copies that
| > were presented to my grandmothers by the author) The paperback was still
| > available in the early '90s and may still be found in used book stores
on
| > Magazine St... if you're lucky.
| >
| > My grand father claimed he could tell where (within 25 miles) in
Louisiana a
| > cook was raised based on the flavoring of the food served in their home.
I,
| > personally, expect it was because he knew most everybody's family
history
| > but his stories expounding on the food and it's origins amused everyone.
| > Most especially a young bride trying to impress a visitor. He would
often as
| > not, consider with a stern face the last of a dish and comment:  "You
know
| > what this taste like?"  followed by a brief pause to allow the lady of
the
| > house to ponder what was coming next he would say 'Another serving'
| >
| > As to what something is recall that 'all things come to he who orders
gumbo'
| > Gumbo BTW is from an African word that translates to English as okra.
I'm
| > not at all clear on the origins of the vegetable okra but if memory
serves
| > this too had it's origins in Africa.
|
| Gumbo comes from the Bantu word "gombo" best I remember. Don't remember
| ever seeing Seafood Gombo on a Somali menu tho ... 8-)
|
| One of my wife's most prized book possessions is "La Cuisine Creole" -
| 1885. Lot of very interesting recipes and nary a mention of "roux".
|
| What is most interesting about these sort of discussions is that nobody
| is ever wrong !! :-)

Yea the augments are always settled by a cook off and it's hard to fight on
a full stomach especially with folk you just shared a bit meal.  The
research done for the Collins book was by way of direct observation of the
preparation of old family recipes and was quite varied as one might expect.
That research was in part how my grandmothers and their friends came to be
gifted with signed copies of Collins books.  Me, the only things I gained
from that research was more than a few pounds and a good bit of real
practical how with regard to cooking.  My sons have inherited the skill set
to the extent they are told what to bring tot he company pot luck dinners.

Read the old recipes carefully as a roux is a basic building block.  An
ingredient that was a given and as such is rarely mentioned.  It's only with
out of state visitors have I ever heard the mention 'start a roux' in
reference to preparing a meal.  Like I said my grand mothers would open the
kitchen with preparing a) rice b) a roux then decide what was for dinner.

To my understanding  African gumbo was a gumbo zarza (spl?) or green gumbo
which was a meat less vegetable stew.  Much like the America stew which
could contain chicken, beef, rabbit, squirrel possum or even armadillo
(possum on the half shell) whatever you serve may have different names but
it's stew (gumbo) none the less.

Interesting point armadillo did not enter Louisiana (armadillo can't swim
and the Sabine River was too deep for them to walk across the bottom so it
was only after the highway bridges were built that armadillo showed up in
Louisiana) until the early 20th century and was quickly added to the pot
(literally). My first serving of baked armadillo was at a hunting camp on
land that is now part of the Audubon Plantation near St. Francisville.

Too bad this 'discussion' has to be a virtual one as I'd love to have a face
off in the kitchen inviting all the .social troops to partake and judge the
results.  Likely the contest would be called on account of nap regardless.