# Okra



## Uncle Bob (Dec 9, 2006)

Okra.....

Love it? Hate it? Boiled? Fried? Pickled?


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## skilletlicker (Dec 9, 2006)

Breaded, deep fried, and pretending to eat vegetables.


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## Robo410 (Dec 9, 2006)

love it in soup/gumbo...stews, etc ... also fried etc.


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## Shunka (Dec 9, 2006)

I love it; it is great in some baked casseroles too.


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## boufa06 (Dec 9, 2006)

I like my lady's fingers fried with chilli or done as ratatouille Greek-style.


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## BreezyCooking (Dec 9, 2006)

I LOVE it, & grow it every year in the garden - heck, even in containers on the deck, since it's such an attractive plant.

I use it (of course!) in gumbos & jambalaya, & if I'm doing a quicky Zatarain's version, fresh okra really adds a spark.  I also add it to soups, stirfries, & stewed tomatoes, & also enjoy it both fried & pickled.


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## Gretchen (Dec 9, 2006)

Like it a lot. Dredged in cornmeal and fried, in soups, stewed tomatoes and okra. Good stuff.


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## Uncle Bob (Dec 9, 2006)

Okra and Tomatoes....mmmmmm shut yo mouth!!!  If a week goes by with out it...I can get hard to live with!


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## shpj4 (Dec 9, 2006)

I like Okra a lot especially in soups.


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## daisy (Dec 9, 2006)

Never tried it. The description of it as 'slimy' is a bit of a turn-off. One day I'll get round to it. 

Can anyone give me a 'tastes a bit like....' description?


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## Dove (Dec 9, 2006)

U.Bob
My DH loved stewed tomatoes, Green Giant canned  corn and Okra..(frozen) stewed togather.
Sounds like you might also be from the South.


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## Corinne (Dec 9, 2006)

Only ever used it for Gumbo. Willing to try it other ways. I hear that Fried Okra is excellent!


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## XeniA (Dec 10, 2006)

daisy said:
			
		

> Never tried it. The description of it as 'slimy' is a bit of a turn-off. One day I'll get round to it.
> 
> Can anyone give me a 'tastes a bit like....' description?


  The slimy-ness disappears depending on how you cook it. We saute ours in olive oil until they're a bit browned and crunchy. Yummm!  Hard to describe the taste, really. I'd just say it's good enough to be worthwhile for you to buy some and try it!


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## crewsk (Dec 10, 2006)

I love it any way it can be eaten. Hubby can't stand when I eat boiled okra, I usually boil several small ones to eat while I'm frying the rest.


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## Yakuta (Dec 10, 2006)

We eat okra a lot.  It is a staple I guess in the Indian diet.  

The best okra's are the baby okra's.  They are not as gummy, and tough as their bigger counterparts.  I like to rinse them in cold water, dry them out a bit in a colander and cut of their tops and tiny bit of the bottoms.  

I then add a little bit of whole cumin in some canola or olive oil and a bunch of dry spices - chilli powder, freshly roasted and ground cumin, freshly roasted and ground corrainder and some turmeric and salt.  I then add the okra, stir and let them cook until they are almost dry (yes the color changes to almost a deep brown but it dries them out and makes them crispy and yummy).  I finish them with a sprinkle of lemon juice.  

That with some dal (cooked beans) and rice on the side, a crispy papad (wafer made with beans) and I am in food heaven


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## BreezyCooking (Dec 10, 2006)

Ooh - forgot about curries!!  I also add okra to both Thai & Indian curries, or serve them Indian style, as noted above, as a vegetable in their own right.


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## YT2095 (Dec 10, 2006)

it`s perfectly Disgusting!

too many seeds for a start (I can`t eat seeds) but that comes no where Near close to the slimey disgustingness that remains, it`s like eating KY jelly <shudder>.

if Okra was the last vegetable left on earth, I`de demand a recount!


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## Andy M. (Dec 10, 2006)

YT2095 said:
			
		

> ...it`s like eating KY jelly <shudder>...


 


*!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   *


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## YT2095 (Dec 10, 2006)

LOL, well it might as well be hadn`t it, infact IMO it`s a few poppy seeds away from being Frog spawn :P

edit: a thought just occured to me whislt thinking along these lines, I wonder if an Extract of this could be made as a Gluten replacement? Xanthan gum goes almost exactly the same when hydrated and that IS used as Gluten replacement.
Might be worth a shot!


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## Uncle Bob (Dec 10, 2006)

Yo Dove....

American by birth.....Southern by the Grace fo God!!!!  

I have a good friend that I tell..."You were not born in the South but you got here a quick as you could"  Bless her heart!


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## Uncle Bob (Dec 10, 2006)

Yo Daisy...Okra taste.."just like chicken"  Just a joke!!

Kinda hard to describe the taste/flavor of okra...It really depends on how it is cooked...Boiled in salted water would be hard to try the first time...kinda like eating your first raw oyster...Cut, rolled in cornmeal..then fried is very popular in my area...Sometimes just cut and fried (no breading) in very little oil is also a treat. Then as others have mentioned some gumbos have okra as a thickning agent as well as adding flavor. Of course then there are okra and tomato dishes as well as Indian recipes as Yakuta described above...No matter how you try it...don't judge it by frozen stuff..try to buy it fresh. 

Ok I'll give it a go...how about it taste like Eggplant and green beans...


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## karadekoolaid (Dec 10, 2006)

YT2095 said:
			
		

> LOL, well it might as well be hadn`t it, infact IMO it`s a few poppy seeds away from being Frog spawn :P
> 
> edit: a thought just occured to me whislt thinking along these lines, I wonder if an Extract of this could be made as a Gluten replacement? Xanthan gum goes almost exactly the same when hydrated and that IS used as Gluten replacement.
> Might be worth a shot!


 
Wonderful stuff. You have not lived until you've eaten okra cooked by the Greeks, the Turks, the Lebanese, the Syrians, and /or especially the Indians. So many delicious ways to prepare it! HAS to be young and tender, though, like any decent vegetable. 

One of my favourite ways is to chop it into 1/4" rounds, add salt, chili powder and garam masala, then deep-fry it until crispy.


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## BreezyCooking (Dec 10, 2006)

Yes, it is true (as with most vegetables) that if not frozen, it must be as young & fresh as possible.  Never bother buying pods that are soft, or even slightly shriveled or have any brown or black spots.  Good fresh okra should be firm & bright green (unless you grow the red varieties ), like a good fresh snap bean.

While, as I said before, I grow most of mine myself, I've found that out of season, high-quality frozen can be much better than old fresh okra.


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## Uncle Bob (Dec 10, 2006)

Breezy is right on target about the good quality frozen vs. poor quality fresh. 

'Okra freezes well as we put up "bunches" each year out of the garden.


Been awhile back but we put up several jars of "dill pickle" okra...small 2 inch ones...they were good to snack on along with other vegetables from behind the house.


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## BreezyCooking (Dec 10, 2006)

Oh - one more thing about okra, although it's not human-food related.  I have a pet Citron-Crested Cockatoo, & she LOVES the okra I pick from the garden that's too large for me to enjoy.  I just slice those big pods up for her raw & she goes to town!!!!

Those of you who grow okra & also have pet birds might want to try this.  I bet other birds besides cockatoos would enjoy them.  Just slice the pieces according to the size of the bird.


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## StirBlue (Dec 10, 2006)

Okra is not a thickening agent for gumbo.  Gumbo is all food.  The basic seasoning for gumbo is "file".  I've been thinking of matching a batch.  
   Some of the buffets here have fried breaded okra.  It is much fresher than the supermarkets.  
   When it grows longer than four inches, it has gone to seed.  
   Someone in the USA is mass producing yellow crocked neck squash.  It's plentiful and getting down right cheap.  
   We were just getting the one squash in the veg bin at $4 a lb.  Now there is a whole crowd of them under $2 a lb.  Where are they coming from?


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