Recipe: Okra with Tomatoes (Vegan)

[Guest guest]

Some people avoid okra because it is `slimy' and I had never knowingly eaten it

until this

year - talk about food prejudices robbing me of wonders! I have cooked okra

several times

this year, and it has never been `slimy' - and I have read since that the

addition of an

acidic something or other (tomatoes, lime or lemon juice) while cooking stops

that.

Whatever, we love it now - especially the tiny finger okra.

 

We had this one a couple of weeks ago.

 

OKRA WITH TOMATOES (VEGAN)

 

This dish calls for browning the okra in oil. That makes it taste, of course,

quite different

from some other okra dishes, and therefore an interesting variant. It is

slightly modified to

taste from a Madhur Jaffrey recipe (her _World Vegetarian_ is a kitchen

stand-by) which

she attributes to the Indians of Uganda.

 

2 Tbsp canola oil

450 g. (1 lb.) fresh okra, topped and tailed and cut crosswise into 1/4-inch

rounds

3 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped (or cheat and use canned)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp cayenne or to taste

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

 

Heat the oil in a large skillet (preferably non-stick - I used cast iron) over

medium-high

heat and put in the okray, stirring for aroound 10 minutes or until it starts to

brown.

Reduce heat to medium, continuing to stir for another 3 minutes so that it

continues to

brown then reduce heat and cook until tender. In other words, don't burn the

okra, don't

overcook the okra ;-)

 

Add alll the remaining ingredients and stir while it cooks on low heat fror

another five

minutes at most - or until the tomatoes are less juicy. Taste for seasoning.

 

Serve with any flatbread and a bean dish with the usual fresh accompaniments.

Great stuff.

 

Best love, Pat /veggiehound