From Louisiana crab cakes to Cajun potato salad, golden cornbread to Creole okra, here are some easy gumbo serving options. Today, learn what to serve with gumbo.

Gumbo is Louisiana’s renowned state meal, and with good reason. With just one spoonful of the hearty spice stew, you’ll feel like you’re on Bourbon Street.

Of course, as good as gumbo is, it seldom serves as a whole meal, necessitating the addition of the ideal cajun side dish.

We’ve compiled this list of gumbo side dishes so you’ll have lots of alternatives the next time you make a huge pot of that liquid gold.

Cajun Potato Salad

Cajun potato salad is a variant on the traditional Southern favorite, with the Cajun Holy Trinity (bell peppers, onions, and celery) giving a spicy edge to the creamy egg and potato combination.

Furthermore, it is a simple side. Simply cube three pounds of Yukon Gold potatoes, boil them, then combine them with the holy trinity, hard-boiled eggs, and spices like mustard, parsley, and a Cajun seasoning blend.

In less than 30 minutes, you’ll have a flavorful potato salad to accompany your gumbo.

Cornbread

On a chilly winter night, nothing beats a loaf of warm, buttery cornbread with a steamy bowl of gumbo.

Cornbread, in addition to its sweet-and-savory combination, may be dipped or crumbled into your gumbo, providing a little feast with each mouthful!

This cornbread is quite simple to make. It foregoes the traditional (but elusive) buttermilk component in favor of a combination of milk, baking soda, sugar, cornmeal, and eggs to create a piece of paradise in under an hour.

Even better, you can create the mixture in a cast-iron pan, which eliminates the need for time-consuming cleaning.

Creole Okra

Okra is a staple of Louisianan cuisine. If it isn’t already used as a thickening in your gumbo (or even if it is), try it as the foundation of this vegetarian side dish.

Simply sauté some onions, garlic, green bell peppers, and tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, then put in some frozen okra before simmering it in tomato juice for fifteen minutes. You’ve created what is basically Cajun succotash as if by magic!

This Creole okra dish pairs well with gumbo, providing a tangy, chewy, spicy counterpoint to the stew’s surf-and-turf characteristics.

Louisiana Green Salad

Want to make a Cajun-inspired salad without using Cajun seasonings? Try this wonderful Louisiana green salad, whose decadently sweet aromas are the ideal complement to a pot of gumbo’s spicy pleasures.

To create this dish, soak cranberries overnight in port wine to infuse them with more sweetness. After that, toss the cranberries with toasted almonds, lettuce, and an oil, vinegar, Tabasco sauce, cinnamon, and honey vinaigrette.

The end product is a salad with just the right amount of heat and sweetness that goes well with gumbo.

Louisiana Crab Cakes

If you want your gumbo to have more meat, try these Louisiana Crab Cakes. With a crab and shrimp combination, these cakes are ideal as a partner to a gumbo that is predominantly meator; they are also excellent for a pescatarian gumbo fan.

To create these crab cakes, sauté veggies like onions and green bell peppers before simmering them in heavy cream. Then, instead of crackers or breadcrumbs, combine them with crabmeat and ground shrimp as a binding agent. The cakes will next be breaded in cornmeal and fried in oil until absolutely crisp.

Cajun Rice

Gumbo over cajun rice is a no-brainer, particularly because jambalaya is basically the same recipe with rice added.

To prepare this rice, sauté onions and peppers, then add a broth of your choice and some spices, then add uncooked rice and simmer for around thirty minutes. You’ll finish up with a steamy pot of spicy, flavorful Cajun rice.

What makes this dish stand out as a gumbo side dish is that it provides reprieve from the heat of the gumbo while still adding a dash of flavor to the meal.

Cajun Fries

The next side on our list is a Cajun spin on an American staple and one of the more adaptable side alternatives. Cajun fries need just sliced russet potatoes, frying oil (such as vegetable, canola, or peanut), cajun spice, and a medium of your choosing.

Cajun spice is made up of onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, paprika, and oregano. You have many alternatives for cooking your potatoes once you’ve cut and washed them and applied the spices. If you’re a seasoned deep fryer, you can use the oven, but you can also use an air fryer or cook them in the oven.

The crucial thing to remember is to dip the fries in the gumbo before eating them for a full dose of Cajun flavor.

Louisiana Bread Pudding

Bread pudding is a sweet Southern delicacy that pairs well with gumbo, providing a taste similar to French toast to balance your stew’s fiery bite and meaty richness.

To prepare bread pudding, whisk together eggs, sugar, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon before spooning it over bread and baking it. When the pudding is done, drizzle it with a delectable banana-rum sauce, whose heady sweetness will chill your palate in between pieces of gumbo.

Shrimp Remoulade

A famous Cajun-European sauce is combined with sweet, delicate shrimp in shrimp remoulade. If you like seafood, this is an excellent accompaniment to the shrimp or beef in your gumbo.

To prepare shrimp remoulade, combine lemon juice, mayonnaise, and seasonings. Then you’ll boil some shrimp and throw them in the sauce, and there you have it! In less than thirty minutes, you’ve made a creamy shrimp meal.

Simply arrange the shrimp on a platter with some arugula beside a generous bowl of gumbo to serve as a side.

Southern Hushpuppies

The hushpuppy, a fried cornmeal dough ball that resembles cornbread, is maybe the southern side to rule them all. Hushpuppies are a sweet and salty side dish that may add different tastes, such as the spicy zing of jalapeo peppers. They are also extremely simple to create.

Simply combine buttermilk, sugar, baking powder, cornmeal, butter, and spices in a mixing bowl, then dip the dough into frying oil. After a few minutes, you’ll have a sweet, crispy side that can either swim in or sit beside your gumbo.

Creole Tomato Salad

Another salad option, this Creole tomato salad adds a burst of fresh, delicious flavor to balance off the heat of the gumbo.

A classic vinaigrette of oil, vinegar, mustard, and garlic is combined with onions, tomatoes, chives, and mint. Although not as complex as some of the other sides on our list, this salad adds a unique and healthful taste to your meal.