Recipes

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

uh-oh Okra

Until a few months ago, I had never had okra.  It never appealed to me...especially after my depression-era grandmother who ate anything and did NOT waste, confided in me that the only food she wouldn't eat was okra.  Not a ringing endorsement.  But when I went to visit my mother-in-law back in September, she added okra to a tofu stir-fry.  I enjoyed the dish so assumed I also liked okra. 

Fast forward to this week.  At my fruit/veggie market they had bags of okra, so I threw it in the cart.  I searched for the highest rated okra recipe on allrecipes.com, Roasted Okra, and made it for dinner Monday night.  It was ready after Henry ate, so only my husband and I got to try it then.  After eating numerous pieces of the roasted okra bites, assuming that I would like it with increased exposure, I finally had to admit defeat and realize that I just don't like okra.  My husband made it a few bites past me, but then also proclaimed he was not a fan. 

Last night I decided that Henry should try it too.  As soon as I put it on his tray, he picked it up - hooray! And then he examined it closely, smushed it between his fingers, and held it out to me.  When I didn't take it quickly enough, he immediately flicked it onto the floor (please now delete earlier "hooray"). Of course I tried again tonight as well.  This time i whipped out my trusty hummus trick.  It seemed like it might work.  Henry licked off the hummus, and then ate the whole bite of hummus and okra.  Success!  ...And then Henry gagged and spit out the okra.  Undeterred, I tried again.  Henry took the bite, moved it around in his mouth a bit, and then elegantly spit the okra out.  After that, he would only eat the hummus off his fingers.

It looks like okra was not a huge hit with our family.  I'm not willing to completely write it off yet though. So, does anyone have any really delicious okra recipes to share?

Happy and (mostly) healthy eating!

5 comments:

  1. Not a huge okra fan myself, until I tried the dried okra from whole foods, made by whole foods. I dont know if it dried or fried but its yummy and addictive.

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  2. Try making a veggie chutney with Okra. Sautee onions, eggplant, okra, and tomatoes. Buy one of the kosher " seeds of change" Indian Chutney sauces. Put some in, cover for 10 min, mix so it doesn't stick to the bottom, and let it all wilt together. It comes out great. The okra thickens the chutney.

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  3. Okay try it one more way... In a vegetable soup. Add it toward the enable cooking so it doesn't get mushy but it's a fun thing tobeat in soups with a tomato base. :-)

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  4. I use the hummus trick too...and there are days when my 3 yo just licks off the hummus. :)

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  5. We have a family recipe we call 'bamia' (really okra in hebrew?) that involves sauteeing okra in tomato sauce. I have been meaning to try it one of these days, will let you know how it goes.

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