I am an okra fan, yes I am!
The last couple of seasons I've had a crack at growing okra. Not popular down here but gee we like it. 4/5 plants is all we needed to keep us in okra last summer. People ask how's it taste, what's good about it. I was including it in curries, casseroles, stir frys etc but I wanted it to shine on its own and found this recipe. I'm guessing some of you out in TGN land will be big okra fans, so please hit me with your best recipes please. I just planted the first round of seeds. The only variety in Australia, seems to be Clemsons Spineless.
Comments
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I absolutely LOVE okra, and Clemson Spineless is a favorite of mine, too! Next year I want to try some of the red varieties.
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<<shudder>> my introduction to Okra has left me definitely not a fan. When I was in Mexico during my Academic Term Abroad in college, my host family had okra at dinner. They must have had southern girls previously. My roommate was from the Boston area. All I could think of as I was choking them down was that I was eating slimy Elmer's glue. Ugh!!!
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We always just breaded and fried it, or added a little to soups.
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Okra is THE best food plant to grow in extremely hot, sunny conditions. It also has large, pretty flowers that are attractive enough to include in a flower bed.
Frying the fruit is probably a favorite cooking method because it diminishes the gooey elements.
I only had a couple of plants the last time I grew them, so I harvested one or two pods at a time. I tossed them into casseroles, soups, even spaghetti. The flavor was compatible with all recipes and I didn't have a slime issue.
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Jerry Clower said it best, "Good ol' slick, slimey boiled okry"
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These were straight out of the can heated up. Now, if they had been in jambalaya or something like that might have been different.
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I love Korean food. Lots of Okra in it, but it's never slimy. I suspect the lemon, lime, and tamerind help with that. Excellent in soup, or pickled...
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I love to pickle it! My husband and I have eaten quite a few jars of homemade pickled okra. I have used this recipe but one time had oranges and no lemons so put those in instead. They tasted great to us both ways!
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Yup! I am in! I love okra (said "okrey" in my family). We bater it in flour with salt and pepper, then in corn meal, fry it, then bake it. Yum City! :) Pretty sure it is no longer very healthy once we are finished with it, but it is mighty tasty! lol
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I also like them raw, sometimes when I'm working in my garden :)
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We like okra baked with cheese.
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I've never had okra. I know it is a vegetable but what kind of veggy is it?
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It is a seed pod in the mallow family. It is very different than most any other vegetable. The flavor is savory and it is very mucilaginous. It has rough prickly hairs, so most people don't eat it raw. But, it is is excellent pickled or breaded and fried, added to soups and gumbos... and, eventually, you may acquire a taste for it in its more slimy cooked forms. I hated stewed okra as a kid, but I love it now!
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oooh gumbos, yup. yup. with andouie. yup.. yup. @judsoncarroll4 you are making me salivate. Darn. I guess I'm pavlov's culinary dog.
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Do not forget that okra is a leggy plant with flowers that are very decorative.
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A favorite family recipe is, "okra and tomato". Chop up some fresh okra and cook it in bacon fat, with salt. Add some canned (or cooked down, fresh) tomatoes. Celery, and garlic ore optional and to taste. Do add some good, chopped, hot peppers though, or at least, some bell pepper and a good pinch of freshly ground black pepper. You want a little heat to balance the sweet tomatoes. Optionally, serve over hot, buttered rice. I come from a rice culture. In which case, a nice pork chop, with a dash of Worcestershire sauce and good, buttered corn (roasted in the oven in the shucks... NOT boiled) would be ideal. Chicken would be good... but, I think tonight calls for pork. Maybe some lima beans.
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@judsoncarroll4 nice recipe. I found a new heirloom seed company in Australia and they have the crimson okra seed. Going to plant some soon for this summer.
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We ate okra growing up, but my mom always sliced and fried it, then served it with ketchup. Maybe not the healthiest, but it wasn't slimy and the kids ate it. I think she would put some in gumbo from time to time, too.
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I had a yummy lunch today. I was planning on making something in the way of Jamaican rundown (authentically made with salt mackerel, I believe. I use canned mackerel or salmon. I'll try it with sardines or herring one of these days.) but I picked up some okra at a farmstand this morning, and thought it would be a nice addition. It was.
It was pretty simple. I chopped and threw into the pot tomatoes, a yellow onion, a large clove of garlic, a habanero pepper(I think) and the okra. I added coconut milk, salt, pepper, and a few sprigs of thyme. Cooked it until the vegetables were getting tender, then added a couple of chopped scallions and simmered a little longer. Fish out the thyme sprigs when done. We added the salmon to our individual bowls and ladled the stew over. I just remembered that you are supposed to add a little vinegar, but it was good without it.
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This sounds amazing!
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Our favorite way to eat okra is just to simply slice it up, toss it in a little olive oil, spread it on a baking sheet, salt and pepper it, and roast in a hot oven. No slime - easy, simple & delicious.
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I have not been brave enough to try cooking okra. I had some prepared at a restaurant that was amazing. Some time later a friend made some for a dinner that we had been invited to attend. It was disappointing. I always worried that I wouldn't be able to do it justice since that friend is one of the best cooks that I know. After reading this I am inspired to give it a try! Thank you all for the great ideas!
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I want to try growing & cooking with okra so I am wondering what kind would you recommend?
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We like it battered and fried. I discovered a few years ago that the Clemson Spineless grows very well in hard red clay. Just keep it damp.
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I miss okra. It doesn't stay hot enough for it here, though I may try to grow it next time I find some seeds. The tomatoes in okra Creole cut the slime. Tossing it with some spices and throwing it whole on the grill is another delicious way to eat it. I love it pickled and raw (as long as it's small and tender).
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Funny story, when we first started our garden, my Father In Law, a retired builder by trade but a farmer at heart, volunteered that Okra has the same "thermal image" as Marijuana. Mrs S and I were caught off guard! Later we laughed at the thought of her old man growing some pot next to his Okra and avoiding the "revenue-ers"!
Back to the question, I'm a product of the Gulf Coast so Okra and Gumbo go hand in hand! (PS-Its a thickening agent primarily for gumbo's and soups! Mrs S loves it fried, me not so much!)
Enjoy!
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@Slippy I grow okra to use in gumbo primarily. But okra and tomatoes like @judsoncarroll4 described are also delicious.
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@Lisa K I’ve only ever grown Clemsons Spineless, 4 plants is enough to keep us in okra for at least 3 months. I did buy some burgundy okra seeds but I think I put them in too early, also the slugs love them. We don’t have much choice here in Australia.
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Thanks @jodienancarrow for the suggestions!
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So excited my Clemsons Spineless & Burgundy Okra sees came yesterday! I cannot wait until Spring!
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