📸👆🏽This retro photo captures a “full-circle seafood gumbo moment”: the pot’s perched — piping hot — on my baby sis’ LA kitchen counter, proudly showcasing her ancestrally inspired culinary accomplishment. The recipe? Inherited and passed down (indirectly) from Moms Myrt to me, then on to her — seasoned to perfection, pan-protein packed, and overflowing with fresh crustacean deliciousness…
Can you recall THE BEST gumbo(s) you’ve ever had? 🧑🏾🍳🔥 [Drop a note in the comments section below & let me know!] :
To this day, my “best gumbo ever” memories go way back—some moons ago—when my beloved San Francisco-based Gumbo Muse and ‘other mother’ — The Amazing Ms. Myrtle Escort White (aka “Moms Myrt,” who was like another mother not only to me but also to an infinite number of others, both before and after me, who were blessed to become part of her “circle of chosen children”.)
Moms Myrt was known and beloved for countless talents, skills, and a wealth of wisdom—like giving the best life advice on all matters—and, not surprisingly, for her accomplished cookery, especially one of her most delish signature dishes: soul‑satisfying gumbo.
Like many Black families who’d relocated from Texas and Louisiana to California (…along with myriad other migratory pathways nationwide… ) during the Great Migration, in Moms Myrt’s younger years her family moved to and settled in San Francisco—what a wonderful city for her replanted culinary roots to blossom!
Fast forward: Moms Myrt was kind and generous enough to share with and teach to me — in addition to her biological daughters (and surely others who asked!)— her slammin’, signature gumbo-making process, step by step. Which i proudly perfected over the years when I lived in So Cal and would make my best versions for gumbo parties I’d either host or attend in “the OC” and in LA, some of those slurped up pots practically prompted marriage proposals from all kinds of folks💍. (But that’s fodder for a whole other post 😂…)
💫 Full-circle gumbo moment: Beyond Moms Myrt’s and “my” gumbo, one of the most unforgettable batches I ever had—a multi-sensory gumbo experience in fact — with the source pot as well as each serving overflowing with plump lumps of Dungeness and snow crab claws, jumbo “scrimps!” [shrimp], well-seasoned stewed chicken, andouille sausage, and of course all the aromatic, trinity goodness that makes a great gumbo (e.g., celery, onion, green pepper, plus garlic…)—was beautifully made many moons ago by none other than my baby sister Kenya when she lived in downtown L.A…
Me & Kenya enjoying culinary aromatics in our mama’s kitchen for Episode 1 of Food Network’s “The Kwanzaa Menu”…
Me & KTP in the kitchen again at our parents’ crib for Episode 5 of Food Network’s “The Kwanzaa Menu”…
Yes, this was before she went all vegan on us y’all! (almost a decade ago now!). And guess what? Turns out, her version was based on my hastily hand-scribed note pad version of Moms Myrt’s “Most Amazing Gumbo”recipe —the very recipe I’d first scribbled down on the first piece of paper i could find while on the phone with Moms Myrt, back in the day. Way before assistive technologies like audio notes with transcripts could more swiftly do the trick! And what makes this even more wondrous is that once upon a time Moms Myrt reminded me how the first time I’d had ever had her gumbo (over 3 decades ago), I allegedly said …(sidenote: I honestly don’t recall saying this but completely believe Moms Myrt’s retelling of the story)…ok so I said: "Mmm, that's good..." and then, as the story goes, without missing a beat or a breath I boldly proceeded to say: "yeah i gotta take some a this back with me for my mama — you know she pregnant right?! It'll be great nutrients for the baby!" LOL... Yeah that very same baby who grew up to become part of this amazing gumbo-making lineage herself. I just love when family flavors come full circle like that! …
I think of Moms Myrt so often — especially any time the trinity hits the pot. Though she’s no longer earthside, her lasting legacy simmers on strongly — in our kitchens, in our stories, and always in our hearts 💕.
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Luckily for my NOW VEGAN baby sis, the omnivore that I AM recently ‘discovered’ a slammin’ —> vegetarian/vegan gumbo recipe by Chef Omar Tate <— in Bryant Terry’s stunning Black Food anthology —which we talked about on my show Savory & Sweet [<—— click either link to see/hear a highlight] . Awesome big sis that I am, I’ve since put her onto it. Now I just need her to make it! — the next time we’re in the same city, that is—so I can update the gumbo gallery below (and, more importantly, get a taste 😋). I’m sure it’ll be delicious, given Omar’s genius & my sister’s culinary skillz.
📜 FYI Dr. Lisa White and her brother- in-law , Kev Kell, are the reason “Moms’ Amazing Gumbo RECIPE”, the treasure that it is, is fully documented in a PDF with color photos and step-by-step instructions!…
Gumbo has a long, flavorful history tied to the U.S. Gulf Coast region (most notably, New Orleans), with deep origin and ancestral roots in West Africa—where most African-descended people in the Americas trace their lineage.
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🖼️ In the meantime, Enjoy all the gumbo beauty shots in this post 📸 Gumbo Photo Gallery ABOVE include snapshots of:
🟡 My baby sister’s gumbo party glory days (yup, there’s a gumbo-to-go jar you’ll see on her kitchen counter!)
🟣 My “big sis / play cuz” Lisa-Lis’ holiday gumbo traditions (Lisa’s actually Moms Myrt’s youngest daughter who carries out her Moms’ gumbo legacy with her sisters Lori and Lynn each New Year’s in San Francisco and Palm Desert, CA…)
✨ Beautiful Bonds — with Briny Bites & Sophisticated Sips! 🥂 👆🏽 Happily hanging with Dr. Lisa-Lis in Brooklyn, vibin’ over bicoastal bivalves and the loveliest of libations at the magical Maison Premiere in Williamsburg …
“A Taste of Gumbo” (1990) by artist Robert Colescott “highlights the complexities of race and gender in the United States…” …Lisa hipped me to this painting after seeing it at a San Fran art museum earlier this year…
📸👆🏽A glorious gumbo beauty shot, from a batch Lisa, Lori, and Lynn lovingly made during the most recent holiday season while together in SoCal — continuing the delicious legacy of their mother, “Moms Myrt,” with the recipe she passed down to her daughters directly from her hands, head, and HEART. 💜
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