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Very Veggie Pesach 2025: Quinoa Gumbo

Gumbo is a New Orleans Creole soup/stew. Traditionally it's made with sausage and shrimp, neither of which are kosher for Passover or anything else! But it can be made without any meat. It's also made with what Creole cuisine calls the "Holy Trinity," peppers, celery and onion, but if that sounds too Christian for you, just think of it as "Kadosh! Kadosh! Kadosh!," the trifold repetition of the Hebrew word "Holy" that occurs in standard Jewish prayer.

This is not a quick recipe, but it's worth the time!

Like my other last-minute recipes this year, this is vegan, gluten-free and non-gebrochts and uses mostly ingredients that are readily available without any special Passover certification, although there are three that may be tricky at this late date if you don't already have them: potato starch, paprika and vegetable broth.

Ingredients 

  • 1 cup quinoa
  • 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup potato starch
  • 2 bell peppers, diced
  • 2 large celery stalks, diced
  • 1/2 cup of onion, diced (about half a medium onion)
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 4 cups vegetable broth or water
  • 2 or 3 tomatoes, diced
  • 1 cup okra, sliced
  • 2 tsp paprika (I used smoked paprika)
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
Kashrut Notes
Let's start with the tricky ones:
  • Ground spices require kosher for Passover certification, and that can be hard to find. I got Pereg brand KFP smoked paprika from a grocery store that specializes in kosher food. You can order that online but I don't know how fast it turns around.
  • Potato starch requires Passover certification. Who knows what could get in there? Manischewitz makes a kosher-for-Passover potato starch that is available in better Passover aisles.
  • Vegetable broth requires Passover certification.  There are vegetable broth cubes that make 2 cups of broth that are kosher for Passover.  If you can't find those, water is ok, though you might need more salt to taste.
  • Quinoa is now generally accepted as kosher for Passover, but certification organizations now generally require Passover certification for it. This can make KFP quinoa hard to find so you may want to talk to your rabbi about it. But seriously, if you're vegetarian and keeping Passover, you probably already have made arrangements for quinoa.
Easy peasy:
  • Extra virgin olive oil is kosher for Passover without any special Passover certification as long as it doesn't have any flavorings or additives. It's a Passover staple.
  • Fresh produce is not a problem for Passover, which covers most of the other ingredients: bell peppers, celery, onion, garlic, tomatoes and okra. Year-round, I usually get okra frozen and pre-sliced but sorry, can't do that for Passover (so many frozen vegetables add pasta these days that cross-contamination is an issue). You can actually skip the okra if you can't find it fresh but you'll want the flavor and texture
  • Kosher salt (coarse-grained salt similar to sea salt) is generally marked Kosher for Passover year-round, particularly the popular, common Morton's brand.
Preparation
  • Soak quinoa in 2 cups of lukewarm water (don't cook).
  • Make the dark roux (pronounced: roo): Heat oil in a large saucepan (3 quarts or more) at medium. Add potato starch and stir, pretty much constantly for 20-30 minutes, and keep an eye on it. The mixture will eventually turn a dark brown, like melted chocolate. Take your time. You can raise the temperature a little to speed it up but don't go too high or it may burn!
Roux Beginning
Roux End

  • Add the "Holy Trinity" vegetables (diced peppers, celery and onion) to the roux and stir until the vegetables soften, 5-10 minutes. Then stir in the garlic keep stirring for another minute or two.
  • Add the broth or water gradually, stirring constantly, to let the liquid absorb the roux and thicken. 
  • Rinse and drain the quinoa.
  • Add quinoa, tomatoes, okra, paprika and salt. Simmer for at least 10-15 minutes.
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