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GREENSBORO -- Louis Allen loves a food adventure.

He scours the city for ingredients that will work with something he's cooking in his second-floor kitchen.

He starts early on Saturday at the Greensboro Farmers' Curb Market on Yanceyville Street and goes anywhere to find what he needs.

He'll cook almost everything. But this Burlington native, now a criminal defense attorney living in downtown Greensboro, likes nothing better than to hover over a steaming pot, make a huge pot of gumbo and say beneath his breath, "Oh, baby."

He revealed that last week as he talked about an interesting idea -- the possibility of clustering all kinds of ethnic markets and restaurants on those vacant acres at South Elm and East Lee streets.

But he kept mentioning his passion for cooking. So, we at the News & Record had to ask:

Do you have any recipes.

He did. Kind of.

Now, beware. Allen doesn't use any recipes. It comes straight from his head. But you have to love this line from Uncle Dewey's Catfish Gumbo.

"Eat slowly with loud, lip-smacking noises, pausing for good conversation and copious laughter," Allen writes. "Clear the dishes and take a walk."

Enjoy.

Contact Jeri Rowe at 373-7374 or jeri.rowe@news-record.com

UNCLE DEWEY'S CATFISH GUMBO

Roux:

1 stick of butter

3 tablespoons olive oil

½ cup flour

3 celery stalks chopped

2 medium onions chopped

1 bell pepper (any color) chopped

The rest:

2 pounds catfish nuggets (cheaper than catfish filets and already cut up, though not enough)

1 pound Hot Moonshine Sausage from Sam's Old Fashioned Meat Market off Summit Avenue in Greensboro (Of course, your favorite link sausage will do. But if you haven't tried the Moonshine Sausage or been to Sam's, then I feel sorry for you.)

2 cups chopped okra (You know fresh is best, but ya gadda do what ya gadda do.)

1 pound cut corn

3 tomatoes, chopped (or two 16-ounce cans chopped tomatoes)

2 cups chicken broth

4 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 bay leaf

1 to 4 hot peppers, chopped (jalapeno, habenero, etc., depending on your tolerance)

Anything else in the fridge should be considered fair game; that's where it gets fun.

Salt and pepper (of course)

4 cups cooked rice (You know how to cook the rice you like.)

1 bottle of your favorite hot sauce to kick up the final result

Chop everything that needs chopping, and put everything in little bowls so you can admire your work. The sausage and catfish need a little advance work before they go in their bowls. Cut the sausage into ½-inch pieces and cook until done in a skillet. Pour off the fat and set sausage aside. Cut the catfish nuggets into 1-inch, bite-size pieces. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook them in skillet with residue of sausage grease, stirring frequently until done (about 6 to 8 minutes over medium heat), then set aside. Everything is now ready to roll. Do not skimp on admiring your work. Maybe take a picture now.

In large stockpot, begin your roux. Melt butter in the olive oil over medium heat. When butter is bubbling, slowly whisk in the flour. Now, remember: World peace depends on you not burning the roux.

Whisk constantly (5 to 6 minutes) until the butter turns nutty brown. Still whisking, add the onions, bell pepper and celery.

Keep whisking several minutes until the mixture thickens. Give it a good hit of salt and pepper, and you have your roux. Maybe take another picture, but be quick about it.

Pour in the chicken broth, add the tomatoes, garlic, hot peppers and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. You can let this simmer indefinitely (until your rice is done and you are nearly ready to eat). Then add the corn, okra, sausage and catfish. Bring to boil again, stirring frequently. Simmer 10 minutes and have at it.

Serve in bowls with rice on top or on the bottom. Add hot sauce to taste.

Eat slowly with loud, lip-smacking noises, pausing for good conversation and copious laughter. Clear the dishes and take a walk.

A caveat: I don't use recipes and have never written down one of mine. So if I left anything out, you'll figure it out.

At least by the second time.