Seafood Gumbo

• 1 onion, quartered
• 1 head of garlic, halved
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
• 2 gallons water
• 6 live blue crabs
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 pound andouille sausage, finely chopped (2 cups)
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 celery ribs, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup finely chopped garlic (12 large cloves)
• 1/2 pound okra, thickly sliced
• 1 pound tomatoes, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon file powder
• 1/8 teaspoon Creole seasoning, such as Zatarains
• 2 thyme sprigs
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over
• 1 pound large shrimp, shelled and deveined
• 2 dozen freshly shucked oysters
• 2 tablespoons hot sauce, such as Crystal or Tabasco, plus more for serving
• Basmati rice and sliced scallions, for serving

1. Make the Crab Stock In a large pot, combine all of the ingredients except the crabs and bring to a boil.
2. Add the crabs and simmer briskly over moderate heat for 1 hour, skimming as necessary.
3. Strain the stock into a pot.
4. You should have about 12 cups; add water if necessary, and reserve any extra stock for another use.
5. Discard the crabs.
6. Make the Gumbo In a large pot, heat the oil.
7. Whisk in the flour and cook over moderately low heat, whisking constantly, until the roux is deep mahogany brown with a nutty aroma, about 40 minutes.
8. Stir in the andouille, onion, celery, red and green bell peppers, garlic and okra and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften, about 10 minutes.
9. Add the tomatoes, file powder, Creole seasoning, thyme, bay leaf, salt and the 12 cups of crab stock.
10. Simmer over moderate heat for 1 hour and 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
11. Stir in the crabmeat, shrimp, oysters and 2 tablespoons of hot sauce and cook until the shrimp are white throughout, about 3 minutes.
12. Discard the thyme sprigs and bay leaf.
13. Ladle the gumbo into bowls and top with rice.
14. Garnish with scallions; serve with hot sauce.

onion, garlic, bay leaves, whole black peppercorns, water, live blue crabs, canola oil, allpurpose, sausage, onion, celery, red bell pepper, green bell pepper, garlic, okra, tomatoes, file powder, creole seasoning, thyme, bay leaf, kosher salt, lump crabmeat, shrimp, freshly shucked oysters, hot sauce, basmati rice

Taken from www.foodandwine.com/recipes/seafood-gumbo (may not work)