I sat down to my first bowl of New Orleans gumbo in the halcyon era of the 70s. Since then I’ve come to recognize one incontrovertible fact: New Orleans’ dirty little secret is that there’s a lot of bad gumbo in what is the best eating city in the U.S.

But you can fix that. It’s up to you. And a few hours in the kitchen. And a trip to Circle Foods or maybe Zuppardo’s.

If you have the time and the inclination you can make a gumbo that could be served at Revolution, Herbsaint or even Li’l Dizzy’s.

If you’re so inclined.

Here’s a handful of recipes from the Scrumptious Chef cooking team. Last year we flew into Austin, Texas and threw a gumbo party that broke every pop up restaurant record that town ever saw. Refer to formula number four if you want to duplicate that hallowed recipe.

A Recipe For Crawfish Andouille Gumbo With Pig Tail Master Stock link

A Recipe For Hog Head Gumbo link

A Recipe For Shark Gumbo With Smoked Andouille Sausage link

A Guide To Making The Best Gumbo You Will Ever Put In Your Mouth link