This vegan gumbo with okra is the ultimate comfort food from the South! It’s hearty, filling, and so delicious! Serve it over rice for a healthy and delicious vegan dinner!
I’ve wanted to make a vegan gumbo for the blog for such a long time. And here it finally is! It turned out so delicious and the recipe is definitely a keeper.
I also made a vegan jambalaya a few weeks ago. Southern comfort food at its best! Yummy!
What is gumbo?
Gumbo is a popular stew from the South East of the United States, namely Louisiana. Louisiana actually designated gumbo as the official state cuisine in 2004. Gumbo has been around for a very long time. Probably it appeared at some time during the 18th century.
Common ingredients for gumbo are:
- a strongly-flavored stock
- meat or shellfish
- a thickener (either okra, filé powder, or roux – or a combination of the three)
- the “Holy Trinity” of vegetables (celery, bell peppers, and onions)
- sometimes also sausage or ham
There are different versions of gumbo. For instance, some versions of gumbo, like the Creole gumbo, contain tomatoes while you can’t find them in others. Also the use of roux varies. One reason for these differences could be that gumbo is a combination of many different ingredients and culinary practices from many cultures. It has French, Spanish, West African, German, and Indigenous roots. Traditionally, gumbo is served over rice and cooks for at least three hours.
Can you make a vegetarian gumbo? Or even a vegan gumbo?
Yes, making a vegetarian gumbo or even a vegan gumbo is no problem at all. You can still get the flavor an smokiness of a traditional gumbo with meat or shellfish by using the right spices!
Liquid smoke is also great to achieve a smoky flavor without meat. And your vegetarian gumbo will also be a lot lighter. I can promise you, you won’t miss the meat in my vegan gumbo.
Great ingredients for a vegetarian gumbo are:
- cellery
- bell peppers (red and green)
- zucchini
- kidney beans
- mushrooms
- tomatoes
- okra
You could also try adding other vegetables such as carrots. For a more creative version of a vegetarian gumbo, you could also use tofu or tempeh instead of the meat.
What You Need For This Vegan Gumbo
- one red onion
- okra
- red bell pepper
- green bell pepper
- portobello mushrooms
- cellery
- cooked kidney beans
- zucchini
- diced tomatoes
- Cajun seasoning
- thyme
- vegan Worcestershire sauce
- liquid smoke
- smoked paprika powder
- freshly chopped parsley
As always, you can find the full ingredient list and detailed recipe instructions in a printable recipe box at the end of this post.
I decided to use portobello mushrooms because they got an amazing meaty texture! However, you could also use cremini mushrooms.
How to make vegan gumbo
The recipe for my vegan gumbo is definitely not a traditional gumbo recipe as the cooking process is much easier and quicker. But it’s still super delicious and also great for a weeknight dinner!
You just got a few simple steps to make this vegan gumbo:
- First, make a roux. This will take about 8 minutes. More on roux later…
- Then, add the onion and the vegetables and cook for another 10 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the okra slime is mostly gone.
- Add the spices, the diced tomatoes, and the kidney beans and cook for 20 minutes.
- Serve over rice and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley.
This doesn’t sound too bad, does it? The only thing that is a bit more tricky might be the roux. But if you pay careful attention, it’s super easy!
What is roux?
Roux is a French thickening agent that has been used for soups, stews, and sauces for more than 300 years. It’s made by cooking equal parts of flour and fat together. It does not only thicken a dish, it also makes it smooth and gives it a nutty flavor.
Usually butter is used for roux. However, you can also make roux with oil or other fats.
What can roux be used for?
There are different kinds of roux depending on the cooking time and the color:
- white/blond roux: has the shortest cooking time and are commonly used to thicken sauces and soups. It has a mild flavor.
- brown or dark roux: longer cooking time. Has a more pronounced flavor, but less thickening power than white or blond roux. Often used for Creole dishes like gumbo. This kind of color is also called “chocolate” or “peanut-butter”.
Why use roux?
Roux is an excellent thickener with ingredients you always have at hand. It gives the dish a great smooth flavor. And when done the right way, it often works better than using starches to thicken a sauce or soup. Don’t worry about the starchy taste of the flour. The cooking process will remove it.
Why does my roux clump? Or why does my roux burn?
It’s very important that you stir your roux constantly and thoroughly from the bottom. Keep in mind that the bottom will get darker a lot faster than the surface as it is closer to the heat. It can just take seconds for a roux to go from “dark” to “burnt”, so pay attention! If it’s burnt, you have to start from the beginning again.
It’s also important that you make your roux before making the sauce! It does not work when you try to add it later to thicken up the sauce like starches.
Roux without butter
If you don’t have butter on hand or if you’re avoiding animal products like me, you can also make a roux without butter. No problem at all! It works really well with olive oil. Just make sure you use equal amounts of flour and oil like you would with butter.
Can gumbo be made without okra?
Yes, you can make gumbo without okra. But keep in mind that okra also works as a thickener. So if you’re not using okra in a gumbo recipe that calls for okra, you might have to add other kinds of thickeners such as filé powder. Filé powder is made from the leaves of the sassafras tree. It’s often used as a thickener in gumbo when okra is not available or not in season.
I hope you like this vegan gumbo as much as I do! Let me know if you give it a try!
Sina – xx
Vegan Gumbo with Okra
Ingredients
For the roux:
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
For the vegan gumbo:
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 2 heaped cups okra
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 2 portobello mushrooms, sliced
- 2 stalks of celery, sliced
- 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
- 1 tablespoon thyme
- 1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika powder
- 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes (do not drain)
- 2 cups cooked kidney beans (= 1 can)
- salt, to taste
- black pepper
Instructions
- First, make a roux. In a large pot heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Sprinkle a dash of flour into the oil to see if it will bubble. When bubbling occurs, gradually whisk the remaining flour into the oil. Stir your roux constantly and thoroughly from the bottom. Keep in mind that the bottom will get darker a lot faster than the surface as it is closer to the heat. Your roux should get a lightly brown color, kind of like peanut butter. This will take about 8-10 minutes. It can just take seconds for a roux to go from "dark" to "burnt", so pay attention! If it's burnt, you have to start from the beginning again.
- Then, add the onion and the vegetables and cook for another 10 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the okra slime is mostly gone.
- Add the spices and cook for another minute. Then add the diced tomatoes, and the beans, and cook for 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Serve over rice and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley.
Yas
This was absolutely delicious!! Thank you.
Melliforte
We made this gumbo tonight in order to use up some garden-fresh okra that was given to us. What a delicious dish! My hubby cut up the vegetables and measured out the spices while I made the roux. It was my first roux but your directions worked perfectly. During the last 20 minutes, the gumbo developed a deep, delicious sauce. Also I need to say that your seasoning was excellent. It is rare for me to not make major changes to the seasoning in recipes I try, but for this gumbo, I only used less thyme than specified, and made my own Cajun spice blend in order to skip the salt. Thank you so much – I’ll be trying other recipes of yours soon!
Susaliah
Great and easy recipe. My family loved the combination :-)
Nefetari
Starting to stay away from meat….Eat Turkey sometimes but rarely. The vegan recipes are wonderful alternative to eating meat which has too many processing issues that harms our bodies. I’ve lost a lot of weight eating vegetables mainly. It’s been a great journey. I prefer to only eat home cooked meals as well. Internet shows exactly what’s in fast food or if your really eating food out there we trust too many people with our health. I decided take control of what goes in my body. Research everything deception is all around. Great recipe thanks💜
pearl mokoka
This is my first time of hearing of this recipe and actually cookie g Okra. I bought Okra and I just needed recipe that is appealing to me as I’m off meat. Just made this recipe everything came out really nice I didn’t have kidney beans and cajun seasoning however sub with butter beans. I even surprised myself with roux which was my first time doing it. I love this recipe, the smell, taste and will be my weekly dish. Thank you for sharing.
Linda Adsit
I no longer eat meat, and I have missed Gumbo very much because of it. I assumed there was nobody out there who made it without meat, but I googled it this morning, and there you were! I may sub a few things, but this recipe looks like a Great place to start. Thanks so much for “being there.”
Whitlyn
This was a hit. I had chickpea and extra okra because I had grown so much and was trying to get rid of them.
Kerry-Rose
This was absolutely delicious! Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any vegan Worcestershire sauce, and my grocery store was out of okra, but it still came out amazing. Super easy, nutritious, and delicious!
Sydney R Martin
i was gifted with vegan red potatoes… a lot of them…. cut them up, put some ck broth in the big crock pot with the seasonings and let it cook until the potatoes were tender…. emulsion blender broke down most but I left some chunks… that’s my roux… added tomato, okra, onion, bell pepper, sweet peppers, celery, garlic.. no room for beans or carrots… the pot is full… still cooking but im expecting good things.. plan to package and freeze… I can add beans when I reheat..
Livetheindia
This really looks delicious , for sure would try . Thanks for sharing
Lisa
This was so delicious! Haven’t made gumbo for a long time. Thanks for the great recipe.