My time in New Orleans has influenced so much of my entertaining philosophy; there should always be good food and music on both the table and in the air. This is one of my favourite dishes to prepare and share for big groups and it is an easy one to prepare the day before and free up time to relax and laugh with your guests and these types of dishes are always better the following day.

It's all in the roux! This cannot be stressed enough that the roux stage requires attention to detail and not taking your eye off the ball for the 20-25 minutes of non-stop stirring that the roux will require.

I love dishes where there isn't necessarily a right or wrong recipe but one that is either a family recipe or one that utilises left overs. This tends to be my gumbo recipe of choice but I do love making a prawn, sausage and chicken gumbo as well. Which flavours of gumbo do you enjoy?