I hardly ever cook anything with okra;it is hard to find most of the time,and it is not my favorite vegetable. However, as a kid, my mom made okra dishes at least once a week. It is a popular middle eastern vegetable, I am thinking because it is readily available in the middle east.
We were at the farmer's market couple days ago, and found some fresh, nice looking okra. I thought it would be fun to try some of my mom's cooking with it, and Bill seemed enthusiastic about it, so I bought about 1/2 a pound.
Since we are still doing Lent, I made the okra stew without the meat. My mom makes it with boneless lamb meat cut into small chunks. I served the okra stew over rice, cooked my mother's style, a.k.a. middle eastern way.
Ingredients:
1/2 LBS fresh tender okra
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2-3 cloves of garlic,minced or crushed
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
enough olive oil for sauteeing.
For the rice:
1 cup of rice
2 cups of water
1 clove of garlic,minced
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
a dash of salt
Start with washing the okra, and trimming the ends(the caps). Drain the okra.
In a skillet, sautee the garlic in olive oil for couple minutes,then add the okra, and sautee for another minute or so.
Meanwhile, in a pot over medium heat, add a little olive oil and the tomato paste, add enough water to get desired consistency. Add the cumin, black pepper,salt and garlic powder. Bring to a slow boil then add the okra( and garlic), let it simmer for 5-10 minutes.
To make the rice, rinse it with cool water and drain. In a small pot, sautee the garlic in little olive oil, then add the rinsed and drained rice, and let it simmer for one minute, while adding the curry and salt. Then add two cups of hot water, bring to a soft boil then reduce heat, cover and let it simmer until water evaporates, about 15 minutes.
It was a good hardy meal, and easy to make too. If you want to add the meat, you can use small chunks of boneless lamb or beef, sauteed then added to the stew to simmer with the okra.
Makes two servings.
Enjoy.
Comments (8)
I eat a lot of okra when it's in season (late summer here in NC) so I'll give this a try then. It sounds and looks delicious.
Posted by Annie | April 9, 2009 7:36 AM
Posted on April 9, 2009 07:36
I've only eaten okra once and didn't like it but maybe it has to do with how it was prepared. This looks yummy and I like all the ingredients in the recipe.
Posted by María I. | April 9, 2009 9:24 AM
Posted on April 9, 2009 09:24
Looks good! I lived in the southeastern US for four years so I ate okra there but haven't really since.
Is your husband doing Lent as well?
Posted by Chiocciola | April 9, 2009 8:19 PM
Posted on April 9, 2009 20:19
My dad loved okra, and grew it in his garden, so I also ate it growing up. Your stew looks really good.
Posted by Cindy Ruth | April 9, 2009 10:02 PM
Posted on April 9, 2009 22:02
Annie, my parents live in SC now, and she always buys lots of okra when it is in season and freezes some. Actually she says if you wash and saute the okra while fresh, before you freeze it, it still would taste delicious when you make it.
Maria, I am not a big fan of okra myself either, and most of the time when i was a kid and could get away with it, I would only east the rice with some of the stew without the okra, but I actually enjoyed this meal.
Chiocciola, where did you live is the southeast?
And no Bill doesn't do Lent, but both of us are not huge meat eaters, and we make many dishes without the meat, so he is not complaining.
Cindy, thanks. Okra is supposed to be very healthy and nutritious.
Posted by candi | April 9, 2009 10:09 PM
Posted on April 9, 2009 22:09
Candi, I went to college in Athens, Ga. It was fun!
I really should cook more vegetarian. I am getting good ideas here on your blog.
Posted by Chiocciola | April 11, 2009 10:20 PM
Posted on April 11, 2009 22:20
A great idea for future recipes this. Thank you for sharing it. Have you noticed how so many people appear to be cooking again? I wonder if the lack of funds due to the current climate has something to do with it and we all appear to be cooking again! its great!
Posted by Tiffaney Wiles | December 20, 2009 11:24 AM
Posted on December 20, 2009 11:24
Made this recipe tonight. Had never had Okra before and it was amazing!!!!!
Posted by Johnathon | September 24, 2010 3:04 AM
Posted on September 24, 2010 03:04