Louisiana Kitchen

Jesse comes home tonight from his three-day trip to Washington, D.C. From what I can tell, he worked hard, but he also played hard. Even though I joked with him yesterday that I could get used to the apartment being this quiet all the time, I'm really excited to have him back. Since he's managed to gorge on terrible food for the past three days (burgers, grilled cheese, pizza, and who knows what else), I've decided to cook a nice satisfying meal to celebrate his arrival. What's on the menu? Gumbo, Mama's Yeast Rolls (from Paul Prudhomme), and King Cake.

I've had King Cake (and my grandfather) on the brain lately and was sent over the edge last night when I started reading Calvin Trillin's The Tummy Trillogy. In his introduction he talked about scouring Louisiana for the best boudin (pronounced boo-dahn). While reading, I couldn't get my mind off of a trip we took to Louisiana last year to visit my grandparents. Jesse and I enjoyed some damn good boudin from Bourgeois Meat Market in Thibodaux, which my grandparents swear has the best around. I wonder if Mr. Trillin would agree?

Boudin is one of those truly regional foods that -- Mom correct me if I'm wrong -- I have yet to find on a menu outside of Louisiana. We picked up boudin in the three varieties available that day; white (pork and rice), crawfish, and red (pork blood sausage). Boudin is cooked inside the casings, so you just have to heat it up before eating. The only way I can describe it is a delicious, thick, meat stew made into a sausage. We also got homemade beef jerky that was out of this world. Served with a side of red beans and rice, you have a respectable dinner or supper.

In this photo, Jesse is enjoying four pounds of crawfish. The waitress said her boyfriend could eat that much and still have room for sides, so that's what he ordered. Four pounds proved to be almost too much, even for Jesse. Anyway, in addition to crawfish, shrimp, and hushpuppies galore, Jesse also got to sample my grandparent's gumbo, which was awesome. It's not the fancy-pants gumbo you get in restaurants, but simple, rich, delicious, and made with just a handful of ingredients -- I have yet to perfect it myself. It's the kind of gumbo that I grew up on and as a result, I now a very low tolerance for anything that doesn't meet the mark. So, I usually just eat it when I go home (and make it occasionally myself).

Since finding boudin in Portland seems to be a long shot, I'll have to settle for a giant pot of chicken and sausage gumbo. I'm pretty sure there's a shop down the street that sells andouille sausage, so my mission today is to seek it out. I'm also going to have to perfect my roux for just the right flavor. It's going to be a fun afternoon!