The Unexpected Gumbo Topping That Brings A Creamy, Fresh Twist

I grew up in Southwest Louisiana in the heart of Cajun country, where gumbo is taken very seriously. I've seen fights nearly break out when it's been suggested someone doesn't know how to make a roux, the key component to any good gumbo. This traditional Louisiana dish must include the "holy trinity" of celery, green bell peppers, and onions, but can have a wide range of other ingredients like various seafood, andouille sausage, chicken or other fowl, filé (ground sassafras), or okra. There's even a Creole style — gumbo z'herbes — made with greens. Some folks use tomatoes for a summer version, but it's frowned upon by traditionalists where I'm from. 

While gumbo has been embraced far and wide, with varying degrees of authenticity, there are still a few things that have remained fairly unique to this area that gumbo — with its various roots in West African, French, Spanish, and Native American cooking traditions — calls home. One way to top your steaming bowl of gumbo is with a cool, creamy dollop of potato salad. At first it seems like an odd pairing, but the flavors, textures, and temperature differences all work together for a deliciously unexpected union of the senses that's hard to beat. Even so, even in Louisiana the practice can spark debate. 

How and when this tradition of adding potato salad to gumbo got its start in Cajun country isn't well known, but may have originated with German-Americans who came to the area in the 19th century. However it came about, it's a combination that works for several reasons. The cold and creamy potato salad helps temper the gumbo's heat (temperature and spice). The tenderness of the potatoes also adds texture to the dish. Finally, the vinegaryness of the salad, usually from mustard and/or actual white vinegar, helps cut the richness of the gumbo. And yes, it can go in there right next to the rice.

Strangely, you don't often see it served this way in many restaurants, even in some of the best Louisiana restaurants for gumbo. Though in some spots, like Chris' Poboys in my hometown of Lafayette, you can order it as a side dish. You're more likely to come across the practice in home cooking, but it shouldn't stop you from asking for potato salad with your gumbo at a restaurant, if it's available. You may discover what a lot of us in Southwest Louisiana have known for a long time: potato salad belongs in gumbo.