“Hugely influential for me and my budding culinary peers of the time . . . both [Mitcham] and his books were fascinating depositories of recipes, recollections, history, folklore and illustrations, drawing on his abiding love for humble, working-class ethnic food of the area.”

 

—Anthony Bourdain

“A delightful book with excellent recipes.”

—Mimi Sheraton, New York Times

“Creole Gumbo is more than a cookbook. It is a history book, a music lesson and a personality profile of great jazzmen.”

—Today

This delicious compilation is cooked with a roux of raconteur Howard Mitcham’s wit and served with a side dish of jazz history and lyrics. As an appetizer, Mitcham traces the development of the cuisine that made New Orleans famous as well as the history of the people who brought their native cookery to the melting pot that makes New Orleans a living gumbo. For the main course, he puts together a cornucopia of local delights that are ready to prepare in any kitchen.

A dazzling array of photos, foods, and far-out folklore, spiced up with tidbits of jazz history and lyrics, comprises a seafood cookbook that celebrates the world-famous cookery of New Orleans. Howard Mitcham serves up more than 300 enticing dishes, from crab gumbo and shrimp-oyster jambalaya to barbecued red snapper and trout amandine.

Mitcham traces the development of sophisticated Creole cooking and its rambunctious country cousin, Cajun cooking, with innumerable anecdotes, pictures, and recipes. Along the way, he presents a list of substitutes for hard-to-find seafoods, a bibliography, and a guide to the best mail-order seafood markets in New Orleans.