It’s not at all traditional — and could possibly get me banned from the state of Louisiana for life — but if you made the day-after-Thanksgiving Turkey Gumbo recipe I wrote about in CityView this month, you’ll be pleased to know that it actually tastes delicious over mashed potatoes. Skip the rice — no need adding more food to your already crowded fridge — just make a little mound of potatoes in your bowl, top it with gumbo, nuke it in the microwave for a minute or two, and stir. Delicious!
And if you didn’t see the recipe, here it is:

Val’s Turkey Gumbo

Ingredients:

Roux (see recipe below)

Bones & scraps from your Thanksgiving turkey

2 large yellow onions, diced

1/4 cup finely chopped garlic

3/4 cup chopped celery

1 lb chopped okra (I used frozen)

4 lbs andouille sausage, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces

2 bay leaves

1 bunch thyme

1 spring sage

1/4 cup paprika

2 tbsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup hot sauce (Louisiana, Tabasco, or – the Army’s favorite – Texas Pete, or any other brand)

Coarse salt an ground pepper to taste

File (optional)

Step 1 – Make The Stock

Put the turkey carcass and enough water to cover it in a  very large pot and boil for a few hours to make a stock. Pick the meat off the carcass and pick out the bones and discard.

Step 2 – Make The Roux

3 cups flour

2 3/4 cups vegetable oil

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet and add the flour, whisking constantly for about 30 minutes. You’ll know it’s ready when it looks like melted chocolate.

Step 3 – Make The Gumbo

Add the roux to the stock and add all remaining ingredients, stirring to mix well. Let it could for about 2 – 3 hours then serve over rice — or mashed potatoes. Freeze any remaining gumbo.