O is for Okra

When I was a kid, my dad and grandpa always had a garden. I'm pretty sure we ate fresh vegetables every day when they were plentiful. My daddy always had okra plants so we enjoyed fried okra often in the summer months. I never learned to fry it and one Sunday before church I was talking to the older couple that sat behind us. Pre-Covid we, like many others, had a tendency to sit in the same spot each Sunday during worship. Anyone else? The older couple behind us were our "pew buddies" and we always chatted before church. I have no idea how okra came up in the conversation but I said I loved it but didn't know how to cook it. I have a giant 3 ring notebook with tried and true recipes and in that book inside a plastic sleeve is this recipe that she shared with me that day:

I've cooked okra her way several times and it is delicious. There is a problem. I hate to fry inside our house. I don't like the way the house smells for several days afterwards. Mark has a fryer we can use on the porch and I could get him to set it all up . . .or . . . .

Last summer, I used the air fryer to cook the okra. It was delicious! I first washed the okra and then whisked an egg with a little water. I dipped the okra in the egg mixture and then into White Lily Cornmeal Mix (I added salt and pepper) and placed in a single layer in the air fryer. I spritzed the okra with olive oil spray and then cooked at 400 for 8-10 minutes. Check it at 6 minutes and adjust time accordingly. Normally, I would slice the okra into several rounds but we had eaten in a restaurant where they served the okra pods whole. These were tiny and tender okra pods so it worked well. I prefer to purchase the smallest pods possible because they are usually more tender.

We've also placed several okra pods on a skewer and spritzed with salt, pepper, and olive oil and placed them on the grill. They are good! I was surprised because I thought the only way I liked okra was fried.

Okra is also a great thickening agent to use in homemade vegetable soup and gumbo just isn't the same without okra.

Hubby will eat it "boiled" or "stewed" but I have a hard time even looking at it. When stewed or boiled, okra has a slimy texture and I just can't eat it but when it is used in a soup or gumbo, it tastes great to me and it doesn't seem to have that same texture issue. For soups and gumbo, I usually purchase okra (non-breaded) in the freezer section of the grocery. For grilled or fried okra, I purchase fresh.

I borrowed this picture from the internet :-)

Last but certainly not least . . .hubby and both kids love pickled okra. Wickles Pickles (and other products) originated in Alabama. The first jar of Wickles we ever purchased was in a hardware store in Auburn! The original company was in Dadeville, AL. The first time we ever ate Wickles Pickles was in a tiny restaurant in a converted gas station in a tiny town . . .and they were served on a saucer as an appetizer alongside saltine crackers - seriously! Wickles are widely available now. (They don't know me - they aren't paying me - we just love them!)

There are other brands of pickled okra in most grocery stores but Wickles seem to be the most loved at our house. Wickles pickles and okra are sweet hot.

Have you ever eaten okra? Do you cook it? What is your favorite way to eat okra?