[onlycafe]

sorry for the delay, i was actually out to a restaurant tonight and ate their gumbo. also heard a terrific band called tumbleweed gumbo.

on to my cheaters roux. i brown the raw flour in a medium hot oven until it is a lighter shade of brown than a winchester rifle stock. this will give you an almost instant brown color cutting at least twenty minutes of stirring time off your roux.

i almost forgot to mention this step, the flour may get clumpy in the oven, you need to move it around with a spoon. after toasting the flour you should sift it to keep the roux smooth.

i use butter and oil for the fat, equal amount of browned flour. heat the fat, whisk in the flour, season as you go.
ham stock , chicken stock, whatever. add a little beer, or wine, whatever.

before i make the roux i usually fry a little bit of bacon to do the onions and peppers. it gets the skillet greasy and bacony first. add the celery.

did i already mention that this should all be done in a cast iron skillet?

add your vegetables to the roux cook a few minutes and add the stock.

sorry for the rambling reply.