Fried Okra

Raw okra pods (from the internet)

Okra is a green pod vegetable and is a member of the mallow family. Another famous member of that family is the cacao plant from which we get cocoa and then of course chocolate. Okra's flavour is a lot different from its chocolatey cousin (although in its raw form the cacao plant would not taste much like the chocolate we consume today, roasting and many other steps are needed to produce chocolate. That will have to wait for a later blog). Describing the flavour of something in words is in my opinion an exercise in futility but I will try anyways. The flavour is similar to that of many other green vegetables, think of combining the flavours of green peppers, broccoli and green beans and then turning down the flavour a few notches; okra's flavour is pretty subtle.

Okra is prized for its thickening abilities in Louisiana where gumbo is king. Okra pods contain a sweet mucilaginous sap that is a great thickener for soups and stews but it can also make the pods slimy. The amount of noticeable "slime" is dependent on the cooking technique, chopping and stewing produces a good deal where pan frying there is little noticeable "slime." My particular recipe called for whole pods breaded in seasoned corn meal and pan fried. With keeping the pods whole I barley even noticed the sticky sap, it was really only noticeable when the cutting off the stems. The seasoning of the breading was a nice addition to the subtle flavour of the okra and the corn meal crust got nice and crispy. One thing I would mention is that pods of the same size would work best although okra selection is generally not huge (here in Ontario anyways). The smaller pieces had a more tender texture while the larger pods retained much of their crunchiness. Its a hard call between the two textures I think I would look for smaller pods next time.

Verdict: Okra will not be a weekly addition to my shopping list I would definitely make this again.