283023 Tue Feb 07 13:00:54 -0800 2006 5 31 Home Cooking 0 1509802 I am having a Mardi Gras party on Feb. 24 and plan to serve chicken and andouille gumbo, jambalaya, creole chicken, and red beans and rice. I want to do as much ahead of time as possible. How early can I make any of these dishes, cool them down, and store in the refrigerator? Is it important to avoid freezing any of them so as to not compromise flavor or texture? Any make ahead tips will be appreciated! Tue Feb 07 13:00:54 -0800 2006 0 AmySue 1 1509820 Gumbo freezes/refigerates & reheats beautifully; in fact, it usually improves after a day or two of chilling. If you're freezing it, it happily lasts months without any decrease in quality. A crock pot (slow cooker) is a great way to hold gumbo on a buffet at a safe temp...all of the above applies to red beans as well. You can get a 5-6 quart slow cooker for under $40. Cook your rice the same day and you'll be in business--if you have a rice cooker, you can use it to keep the rice warm. N.B. Try adding a pint of oysters to your chicken & andouille gumbo...if you have oyster-haters in the crowd, cut each oyster into a couple of pieces & you'll get all the flavor without seeing the "evidence." I think that the mild seafood flavor imparted by the oysters is an incredible compliment to the chicken/sausage combo. IMHO, jambalaya doesn't reheat well, especially shrimp jambalaya. The rice gets mushy and gloopy (I use real long-grain, NOT the converted stuff--I'm a brown-jambalaya traditionalist). So I'd make it just before the party, if possible. I don't know what "creole chicken" is. A great way to start an argument in south Louisiana is to discuss the meaning of the word "creole".... Tue Feb 07 14:02:52 -0800 2006 1509802 0 Hungry Celeste 2 1509914 I second every single thing said...right down to the comment on "creole." Tue Feb 07 21:57:26 -0800 2006 1509820 0 Aaron 2 1510118 It is not ok to add secret ingredients to food offered to guests. This is both a courtesy issue and a safety issue. More folks than just oyster-haters would be affected by adding bits of oyster to your dish. In your example, you might cause unsuspecting people with a shell fish allergy to become violently ill. Thu Feb 09 08:33:28 -0800 2006 1509820 0 ld 3 1510132 I use a number of recipes that call for anchovies and I always tell everyone that there is anchovie in the dish, then they won't eat it, and not due to allergies either, but I think that restaurants use anchovies in salad dressing and such and don't tell the patrons. I love the additional salty flavor it adds to a dish.One restaurant that I know of uses raw egg in their house dressing and never mentions it. Thu Feb 09 10:39:34 -0800 2006 1510118 0 Amy G. 4 1510270 Would you please mention some of your favorite dishes which include anchovies? I want to try adding more anchovies to our diet, but would appreciate some ideas which have subtle results. Thanks. Thu Feb 09 18:30:59 -0800 2006 1510132 0 Babette