Land of Cotton – Day 3-5: Cooking and stuff

Posted on 6 April 2016 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

It seems that Natchitoches is famous for meat pies.   So, I had to have one.

And what would a trip to these parts be without an enormous bowl of gumbo.

I am still not sure what gumbo is, but it was pretty tasty.

This town was established in 1715.  Apparently missionaries came down the river from my native place and worked first in the northern part of Louisiana.

The river front.   It isn’t actually a river.  It is a lake that is formed from the extremely long “ox bow” cut off from a nearby river.

During the stay, I turned some mushrooms and onions and spinach and cheese and a few other things not shown,…

  

We made due with a not perfect cut of meat that had to be … adapted by force.  No skewers or string, so I split some chopsticks.

… into these.

The Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, once the Cathedral of this now-titular diocese.

And, just for fun.

And….

No, I don’t think I will.

It’s off to the north for me today.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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6 Comments

  1. robtbrown says:
    6 April 2016 at 11:27 AM

    The meat pies down there can be delicious.

    Gumbo (okra) is a stew using okra with peppers, onions, and celery. Sometimes file’ is used. The aforementioned is cooked in stock. Chicken, sausage, or shrimp–or some combo of them–is added. Then it’s cooked for hours. Except for the base, there is a lot of freedom in how it’s done.

    When the Knights would have a function, they would use a big pot over an outside flame, stirring with a ladle.

  2. semperficatholic says:
    6 April 2016 at 2:25 PM

    We cook a lot of gumbo, yummy. It is the roux that gives gumbo that special flavor no mater if it is seafood or chicken gumbo. Did you try any boudin?

  3. Acanthaster says:
    6 April 2016 at 2:58 PM

    That fortune cookie seems to be saying – “Say the Black, Do the Red!!” (Pay attention to the cues…tone down what you’re adding in). I think it’s on your side, Father Z. :)

  4. acricketchirps says:
    6 April 2016 at 4:52 PM

    The butter & flour in a good gumbo would be slowly coaxed to a deep chocolate color (and arms burnt) before any of that other stuff happens. Shrimp are added at the very end–also, at my house, fresh oysters at the very very end.

    But waddoou-eyeno — from the Canadian prairie provinces?

  5. JGavin says:
    6 April 2016 at 4:58 PM

    OK, where can I get that poster?

  6. letchitsa1 says:
    7 April 2016 at 8:42 AM

    Haha…love the heresy meme. It only leaves out “and translated into English”.

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