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Papua New GuineaFlavors · Luisiana
Thick Louisiana stew served over rice, made with a dark roux of flour and fat, the “holy trinity” of onion, celery and bell pepper, and seafood or chicken with sausage. It has been the state’s official cuisine since 2004.
Traditional dish from Luisiana
Also known as: Louisiana gumbo, seafood gumbo, chicken and sausage gumbo, gumbo z'herbes
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
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Gumbo — Luisiana, the United States
Gumbo is the dish that best sums up Louisiana cooking. It’s a dark, thick stew simmered for hours and served over white rice. It almost always uses a roux — flour slowly toasted in oil or fat until it reaches a chocolate color — and the base local cooks call the holy trinity: chopped onion, celery and green bell pepper. From there, every family has its own recipe.
The dish brings together the influences that shaped the southern part of the state: French techniques, okra from African tradition — the word gumbo comes from a West African term for okra — filé, a powder made from dried sassafras leaves used by Indigenous peoples to thicken broths, and contributions from Spanish, German and Caribbean cooks. Gumbo appears in a governor’s reception record from 1803, but it was already made earlier. In 2004, the state legislature declared gumbo the official cuisine of Louisiana.
There are two main families. Creole gumbo, more common in New Orleans, often includes seafood — shrimp, crab, oysters — and sometimes tomato. Cajun gumbo, from the rural parishes of the south and southwest, prefers chicken and smoked andouille sausage, with a darker roux and no tomato. The thickener can be the roux, okra or filé, alone or combined. There is also gumbo z’herbes, made with many leafy greens.
Gumbo is served in restaurants across the state, at family gatherings, festivals and neighborhood events, especially in the colder months. It comes in a bowl with a portion of rice in the center; in some rural homes it’s served with potato salad on the side or in the same dish.
Luisiana
Official cuisine of Louisiana by state law in 2004; made across the state in Creole and Cajun versions.
Roux (flour and oil or fat), onion, celery, green bell pepper, garlic, stock; seafood (shrimp, crab, oysters) or chicken and andouille sausage; okra or filé (sassafras powder); white rice.
In a bowl, over white rice; in rural areas, sometimes with potato salad. Filé may be sprinkled at the table.
Year-round; more common in the colder months, at family gatherings and celebrations.
Your questions
Creole gumbo, more common in New Orleans, typically includes seafood and sometimes tomato. Cajun gumbo, from the rural areas of southern and southwestern Louisiana, favors chicken and andouille sausage, with a darker roux and no tomato.
It’s flour slowly toasted in oil or fat until darkened. It gives the stew color, flavor and thickness.
It’s the powder of dried sassafras leaves, used to thicken and flavor gumbo. It can be added at the end of cooking or sprinkled at the table.
Flavors of the United States
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