Gumbo--New Orleans

This is one of my Paw-Paw's recipes, from his resturanteur (I think I spelled that right) days, so you will have to make some adjustments unless you are feeding a LARGE crowd. We never adjusted it, because it is usually fix for family gatherings. Enjoy!

• Ready In: 2 hrs 30 mins
• Yields: 3-4 gallons

Ingredients

• 12  bell peppers, diced
• 2  bunches shallots, chopped
• 2  stalks celery, chopped
• 2  cups  cooking oil
• 1  quart flour
• 2 (3 lb) boxes  cleaned hard-shell  crabs
• 6  links sausage, sliced
• 5 (3 lb) packages  cut okra
• 5  lbs shrimp, peeled
• 1  teaspoon salt
•  granulated garlic
•  cayenne pepper
•  file powder
• 1  lb tomato paste (10 cans)
•  bay leaf
• 1 1⁄2 gallons water

Directions

1. Note: The 1 hour prep time is if you are chopping the vegetables and preparing the seafood. If you want to take a short cut, you can use frozen veggies and precooked seafood. It is just a matter of taste.
2. Sauté in 20 quart pot, the following:
3. Preheat 1 quart oil; add vegetables, let cook till brown (approx. 15-20min). Add tomato paste, let cook 10 min., stirring constantly to keep from scorching.
4. Separately make Roux:
5. Heat 2 cups cooking oil; add 1 quart flour, stirring constantly till brown. Add roux to pot, adding water, spices (to taste), crabs and sausage. Let cook one hour, stirring occasionally.
6. NOTE: Filé should be added just 10 minutes before turning fire off, stirring well. Serve with rice.