re: Thick vs thin gumbo in relation to area of the state?

I like it just like the gumbo in GG's signature photo.

I grew up in Jeff Davis Parish, but my mother (from Texas) learned to make gumbo from my paternal grandmother from New Iberia. So maybe it's not just where you're from, but where your grandmothers learned to make gumbo. Or something.

I don't recall my mother putting okra in gumbo, so I think I learned to make shrimp and okra gumbo on my own. She made chicken and sausage gumbo and seafood gumbo. File was only ever used in your own individual serving.

I like dark, thick shrimp stew. You do taste the roux in that!