There are times when on a diet that one needs comfort food.  Something warm, spicy, delicious and filling.

For those times my Shrimp Gumbo is a  low carb comfort food recipe I love.  In fact I make it even when I’m not on a diet.

Eating while on the road can be treacherous to the scales.  I’m between appearances for a while and thought I’d change the way I’ve been eating… to seriously healthy! ( And lose weight on the way.)

What caught my attention is something my daughters have tried and with it found a bit of health success; Dr. Oz’s Rapid Weight-Loss Plan.   It’s two week plan and while strict, looked do-able.  It’s not totally low carb, but more ‘whole foods’.  And so here I am on day 4 of a two week diet and I think I’ll easily stick to it for the whole two weeks.  I did have a headache the first couple of days.  Now I’m starting to feel really good.  (And yes, I’ve lost weight already and so has my DH, Tracy who is my diet buddy this time.)  But enough about that.  

I pulled the Shrimp Gumbo recipe out of my file of recipes I’d developed while I was on  the South Beach a few years ago.  It was dinner time of day three on the diet and we needed something a little special, but quick to make.  This one fit the bill.

I chopped up all the onion,bell pepper, celery and garlic and sauteed it in a bit of olive oil.

Did I mention Okra?  Well I shouldn’t because there isn’t any in this recipe YAY!   Zucchini is my secret weapon that keeps the carb limit down in this recipe (and no slimy texture either. 🙂 )

I then added the diced tomatoes and tomato paste (no sugar added!), water and seasonings.   You have to choose how thick you desire the gumbo to be.  If you use 2 cups water it will be thick like a stew and suitable to go over rice (or even cauliflower rice.)  If you use 4 cups it will be more like a hearty soup, which is what I chose last night.

I brought it to a boil and then turned it down to a simmer and tossed in the pre-cooked, tails removed shrimp and let the gumbo bubble for a few minutes, just till everything was hot.  This is the secret to making this low carb comfort food recipe truly outstanding.  The vegetables are still a bit crisp and the shrimp only gets heated and is still a good texture.

Enjoy! –Laura

Shrimp Gumbo ~ Low Carb Comfort Food Recipe

Laura Hickman

This spicy dish is a wonderful low carb comfort food.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course Entree

Cuisine American

Servings 6

Ingredients

  

• 16 ounces shrimp cooked, tail on
• ½ green bell pepper chopped
• 1 onion coarsely chopped
• 2 stalks celery chopped
• 2 cloves garlic chopped
• 1 medium zucchini
• 6 ounces tomato paste
• 15 ounces canned diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4 teaspoon thyme
• ¼ teaspoon basil
• ¼ teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2-4 cups water*

Instructions

 

• Warm oilve oil in the bottom of a pot or pan that will hold 8-10 cups.
• Sauté and stir onions in the pot until golden brown.
• Add celery, garlic and bell pepper and sauté and stir for 2 minutes.
• Add chopped up zucchini to pot and pour in diced tomatoes, tomato paste, water, and seasonings.
• Stir to blend and bring to a boil, and toss in shrimp.
• Cover and simmer about 5-7 minutes, till just hot

Notes

*Choose how much water you want. If you want it more like a stew, use 2-3 cups. If you want a hearty soup use 4 cups.

Keyword shrimp gumbo

More Low Carb recipes you might enjoy:

 Tuna Casserole