re: Made some gumbo this morning, took some pics of the process.

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Whisk your oil and flour together in a cast iron skillet or pot or Le Creuset pot even. Put your oven anywhere from 350-375 and put the pot in the oven. When it starts to bubble and turn a little brown, give it a stir. You don't have to stir all that often until it's starts to brown well. The stirring is not for the prevention of burning it, but more to get an even browning. Cook it until you get the desired color. It's nearly impossible to burn it. It takes longer than the stovetop method, but you are free to do other things while its cooking like chopping etc... Very easy and you can get it right on the money as far as the color you desire. Don't be afraid to go dark.

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i've yet to have a bad roux come out of the microwave..except at my mom's house when i used a glass bowl that wasn't pyrex

i'm sure everyone remembers that pic.

oh good you're here!

so you still opt for oven roux over microwave? i guess microwave roux does take more attention because you have to keep stirring it every couple of minutes until it starts to darken.

also..i find i just don't like the consistency of my roux using vegetable oil. it seems more 'runny' to me at the end than when i use bacon grease or lard. that seems to puff up like a mousse towards the end and it has some 'body' to it when i ladle it into the stock. the veggie oil roux..always seems runny.

is that just me or is there really that much of a difference in the type of oil you use?

eta also, my wife is making me crazy..she keeps insisting on helping and putting the trinity into the stock. i told her it HAS to go in the boiling lava roux first but we're at an impasse here because she loves to help with the gumbo but this is driving me up the wall.

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also..i find i just don't like the consistency of my roux using vegetable oil. it seems more 'runny' to me at the end than when i use bacon grease or lard. that seems to puff up like a mousse towards the end and it has some 'body' to it when i ladle it into the stock. the veggie oil roux..always seems runny.

is that just me or is there really that much of a difference in the type of oil you use?

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Mine usually is like a paste at the end. Usually doesn't matter once I add the Trinity because it just coats the veggies pretty well

Sorry, I meant with veggie oil. I do 1 cup oil to 1.5 of flour though.

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Sorry, I meant with veggie oil. I do 1 cup oil to 1.5 of flour though.

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i'm going to try this ratio out next time i am stuck using veg oil.

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so you still opt for oven roux over microwave?

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I've never made it in the microwave. I usually make too much roux at one time for that to work for me, I think, and I don't want to have to stop and stir that often. I'm sure it's fine. I know plenty of folks who make it that way, though I don't know that I've eaten their gumbo.

I did make a small roux about 2 cups flour to 1/5 c oil for a crawfish gumbo over the weekend. I did it in the oven, though, on 375 while I chopped the veggies. I was also cooking something else at the same time. I didn't stir it much at all until the end.

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is that just me or is there really that much of a difference in the type of oil you use?

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I've only used peanut oil or vegetable oil for roux for gumbo. I don't know if there is a texture difference, but my roux has never been runny. Could be the ratio of flour to oil. I think different fats yield different flavors.

Tell the wife she can help by stirring the trinity in the roux while while it sautes. I don't get why she would keep adding it to the stock when you've told her not to if she's really trying to just help?

Garnish her bowl with fresh cut trinity.

I can't stand crunchy green beans!

I do a half gallon of stock for mine. 7/1 to 8/1 liquid to oil ratio.

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Garnish her bowl with fresh cut trinity

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ima do it!

(pray for me)

Post results.

Or have one of your heirs do it.