What Is File Powder?

There’s a Hank Williams lyric that goes, “Jambalaya and a crawfish pie and a file gumbo.” And if you’re from somewhere around the Louisiana area, you probably heard that back in the day and were like, “Oh yeah, file gumbo. Sounds good.” But if you are from literally anywhere else on the planet you were probably wondering what the heck this weirdo was mumbling about. What is file powder? What is in file powder? What does file powder taste like? You’re about to find out. 

What is file powder?

File powder is an herbal seasoning powder made from the leaves of the sassafras tree. It is mainly used in Cajun and Creole cooking. Yes, Cajun and Creole are two different things. There’s a lot of little nuances that differentiate them, but the main difference is Creole generally features dishes with lots of complex ingredients and sauces and is found mostly in New Orleans while Cajun is more associated with big one-pot meals and generally found around rural Southern Louisiana. Both Cajun and Creole cooking have their own versions of gumbo. And file powder is usually associated with gumbo.

So what is gumbo file powder? It’s the same as file powder. But some folks call it file powder and some folks call it gumbo file powder. Some food historians believe that gumbo descends from West African soups and stews. Those soups were usually thickened with okra, or gombo in the Central Bantu dialect. So in turn, a lot of gumbo was and is thickened with okra. Now, okra isn’t everybody’s favorite veggie. So, some folks thicken their gumbo with file powder. 

But the most common way you’ll see file powder used across southern Louisiana is as a table condiment. A lot of times, file powder will be on the table alongside salt and pepper, so you can season and thicken your meal however you see fit.

What is in filet powder?

Filet powder is made from the ground leaves of the sassafras tree. What the heck is a sassafras tree? Well, it’s a tree that grows in the eastern U.S. and its roots were the original ingredient in root beer. Sassafras fell out of favor and stopped being used when it was discovered that the roots and barks contained a carcinogen. However, sassafras leaves are perfectly fine. 

What does file powder taste like?

The taste of filet powder is hard to pin down. It has a bit of a root beer taste along with a combination of thyme, savoriness, sweetness, and a bit of astringency. It simply adds a little more depth to the flavor of your food. I could always use more depth so I used a lot of filet.