Let's Talk Okra - Love or Hate?

I like it - every which way!

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I love it. Especially how it can allow me make it into quite a number of dishes.

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I don’t seek them out, but there’s not too much I wouldn’t try, more than once. My BIL makes them fried, which I have been happy to eat, but would not make at home. Like the eggplant thread; ideas welcome, especially if adaptable for one , and not of the “Serve Immediately!” persuasion. I hate that.

That is correct. They seek you out.

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Love…but I’ve only had Indian and quasi Indian versions of it.

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Yeah, I have the Indian version too (they are drier and much less sticky), and I like it. I bet many children prefer this version better. However, I also like the cornmeal deep fried version too. The slightly crispy exterior and moist stick interior is a nice contrast. I love the gumbo /etouffee version. When I see excellent quality okra, the first thing comes to my mind is: Let’s make gumbo. :heart_eyes:

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Water is bad for okra! Swish it quickly & dry on a towel. Cut off the stem & cut into 1" pieces. Heat a frying pan & add avocado or olive oil till it ripples. Add okra pcs to pan & saute till browned. Once it has been sauteed you can add tomatoes, onions, etc. & it shouldnt be slimy. Frying/sauteeing it before adding liquid ingredients is crucial to avoid the slime factor!

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I love it. I grow it. I cook it as follows: (1) cut in rings and dust with cornmeal/cayenne or Tony Chachere’s and sauté on high heat until a little char forms, (2) coat whole okras with a thin skin of olive oil and grill them, (3) use the too-old, too-tough ones in gumbo. I love eating it in Indian food, sautéed dry with onions/spices etc. And I love lightly breaded and deep-fried okra, although I would never make it at home.

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From the merch of Chef Vivian Howard:

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Trader Joe’s frozen sliced okra, lightly steamed. What’s not to love?

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The frozen part, and the steamed part :stuck_out_tongue:

Somehow I have a recollection that frozen okra didn’t really work well as fresh okra too, but I cannot remember exactly why. Otherwise, I would have bought frozen okra and stored them in the freezer. Instead, I always want for fresh okra coming in season.

The frozen works fine for gumbo. I don’t use it for anything else.

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I use the highest quality of okra for my gumbo. :star_struck:

The problem is I generally want to eat gumbo in the winter. Fresh is hard to come by then…

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Frozen okra tends to be older / thicker / have more seeds, and the moisture makes it gummy (also, it has tops and tails, which I discard otherwise).

It can still work to sauté or roast, but you don’t want to let it thaw first, or it’s slimesville.

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I don’t mind the mucilage if it’s cooked tender crisp, but over cooked and frozen gets really gross!

I wonder how fresh okra poppers would be on the grill? One could spice up the cheese filling, they might be tasty. Okra sushi? Nah not so much…

I am completely ambivalent towards Okra. If you serve it to me I will eat it without complaint, if I were to wake up in a world tomorrow where Okra never existed, I probably wouldn’t notice.

I’m thinking it would be quite delicious to make okra tempura using fresh pods. Since I live in a northern state I’m not sure I’ve ever seen it fresh in a regular supermarket. So I’ll use frozen for gumbos and curries, but will pick up fresh if good, when I go to the Asian markets.