Regional Cooking

 Here in Louisiana, we do a lot of regionnal cooking.  Something that is considered crucial to a recipe is omitted entirely in other parts of the state.  For example, Stuart's comment illustrates this in the perfectly.

Heretic!

One cannot make gumbo without RoTels. Period.

Red Gumbo!  I've seen that in the River parishes and in Natchitoches.  It's a regional variation, and tickle the taste buds.   In some places, okra is added.  In other places a scoop of potato salad is added.  The first time I was served gumbo with potato salad, I was a bit confused.  It' ain't bad, but I'll take my potato salad on the side, thank you.

Jambalaya is another food with regional variations.  You'll find brown jambalaya, red jambalaya, and white jambalaya.  They are all good, ad all different. In central and north Louisiana, we generally make our jambalaya with sausage end fowl.  In South Louisiana, you find a lot of seafood jambalaya.

My maternal grandmother grew up in New Iberia, along the Bayou Teche.  She cooked gumbos, sauce picante, and courtbullions.  My paternal grandmother grew up in north Louisiana and cooked in the German and Scots-Irish tradition.  I learned a lot from both of them, and my cooking reflects that .

The blending of cultures is what makes our cuisine so vibrant.  The cultural and gustatory blending of French, Spanish, Creole, Black and Native is what makes our food so wonderful.