A bisque is a thick, rich soup that is usually made with seafood that has been pureed and cream. -- droxford
And, by the way, I have the recipe for the Post Oak Grill's shrimp bisque (manager gave it to me). -- droxford
We still have the house on Balboa, but I live in Pasadena, CA now. I guess I should change my info. If you had your Balboa bar at Dad's on the main drag (Marine) on Balboa, you were within throwin' distance of my house.
I'll let all of y'all in on a secret. Try Kay's Roux as a substitute for making your own. Mark my words: You will never bother making homemade roux again. This completely changed me. I can make a mean chicken and sausage gumbo in less than two hours now. Trust me.
For the most part, it's the same. I like a bit of tomato in my gumbo occasionally--like a can of rotel. I'm not a big fan of tobasco, but I always use white pepper in addition to cayenne. I sometimes add some chopped parsley towards the end. I can't remember if he mentioned okra--which I use about 50% of the time. Other than that though.....seafood gumbo has a fairly basic structure and RMTEX hit all the major points. Beyond that, we all have our extra little "touches" that make gumbo our own. If you're ever feeling REAL adventurous, and you want an excredible treat, make your roux with clarified butter. You must use a pretty low heat with butter because it has a much lower point (in terms of temperature) at which it starts to break down. Nevertheless, it can make one hell of a tasty gumbo. Plan to spend at least an hour and a half with a butter based roux.
Schweet! We were staying with my brother-in-law who lives in Trabuco Canyon (near El Toro). Had a blast - did Balboa, Salt Creek beach, Disneyland, beach, Angels game, beach.... -- droxford
My recipe for Gumbo is almost exactly like RMTex's so I'll spare you the details other than saying, "for a top shelf gumbo you must make your own roux." I can't wait for the first cold front on a Saturday or Sunday so I can get in the Gumbo mood. Gumbo is like beans and chili in the respect that it is always better the second day. I also always freeze some out of every batch for instant gratification later.
