Creole Seafood Stew is a stew prepared in the Creole style of cooking, native to Louisiana. Creole stews first appeared in the dishes of 18th century southern slaves, who used a number of cultural influences, mixed with regional ingredients, to prepare dishes for affluent slaveholders. The word “stew” comes from the Middle English word “stewe”, meaning a heated room for a steam bath. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stew Creole Seafood Stew is cooked using a combination of cooked vegetables, sausage, fish, seafood, broth, and a host of seasonings, that is combined into a large pot and allowed to simmer. http://cajunfires.com/cooking/cajun-seafood/creole-seafood-stew-recipe-ingredients-for-seafood-stew-recipe The stew is highly versatile, allowing for a number of combinations of meats, fish, and seafood. The dish can be prepared using quick, simpler recipes, or by using more complicated recipes, that require several steps and a longer cooking time.http://www.frenchcreoles.com/CreoleFood.html

Creole foods are rooted in the economic disparities of 18th century Louisiana, where slaves were divided into classes. Those who were charged with tending to the kitchen duties, and preparing the meals for their affluent families, did so using a variety of imported spices, and recipes with French, Spanish, Native American, and African influences. http://uwf.edu/tprewitt/sofood/past.htm

Cooks used traditional French soups and stews, combining them with cooked vegetables and spices, and adding regional goods, such as fish, crawfish, shrimp, oysters, and crabs. These dishes were viewed as sophisticated, as opposed to Cajun cuisine, which was the style of cooking of the poorer classes.http://www.frenchcreoles.com/CreoleFood.html

As Creole cuisine became more popular, dishes such as Creole Seafood Stew, were prepared in a number of regions, and often modified to include regional tastes and ingredients.http://uwf.edu/tprewitt/sofood/past.htm

Unlike Gumbo that is traditionally prepared using a roux, Creole Seafood Stew is made using either a roux, or a broth base. The vegetables that are added are used to enhance the flavor and add spice including airmatics, such as celery and parsley, and garlic and peppers for heat. The sausage that is added to the stew can be Andouille, traditionally seen in Creole and Cajun cuisine, or any sausage that suits individual tastes, like Kielbasa. Any fish, with a sweeter mild taste, goes well with the flavors of the Creole Seafood Stew, but any kind of fish or seafood can be used in the recipe, including salmon, clams, and crawfish. http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/412<ref> http://uwf.edu/tprewitt/sofood/past.htm