okra

Name: Easy Grilled Okra
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 1 lb fresh okra; Olive oil; Seasoning Blend of choice

by Courtney Leave a Comment

Easy Grilled Okra

In the heat of summer, okra shines as a green jewel. It’s one of the favorites of southern gardeners. This may be due to the fact that okra loves hot weather or because it’s tall and leggy, not taking up tons of garden space. And I imagine that the taste is also part of the appeal. I know some people complain about the okra slime, but once cooked, okra loses that particular feature. And this grilled okra recipe is a quick and easy way to get this summer favorite onto the table in a flash!

Summer Okra Harvest

Each year, the amount of space I devote to growing okra increases. Freezing okra to use later is an easy way to save an abundant harvest for later, so there’s no reason not to grow a raised bed full (or a few rows). Not sure when your okra is ready to picked (or which okra to choose at the farmer’s market)? Check out my post on when to harvest okra; it’s so easy!

Grilled Okra Recipe

With the summer heat that okra plants love so much, also comes my attempt to be in the kitchen as little as possible. The oven heats the house up so much, and frying takes so much effort (and clean up). And since the hubby has been honing his grilling skills over the past few years, grilled okra has become one of the easiest ways to prep this vegetable for a quick dinner. (He highly recommends Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling.)

This grillied okra recipe is not only fast and easy, but it saves on dishes to be washed. That’s always a winner in my book. And if it’s possible to grill the entire meal, even better (grilled okra goes well with just about any protein). This leaves more time for evening bike rides or games in the yard, all the things that make summer so appealing. So here’s what you’ll need to get your okra on the grill.

Fresh Grilled Okra Ingredients

1 lb fresh okra, cut lengthwise

Olive oil

Seasoning blend of choice (We love Old Bay or salt, pepper, and garlic powder)

Skewers (bamboo or metal)

The Recipe

Begin by heating up the grill. While it heats up, cut the tops off of the okra pods, and slice them in half lengthwise.
Skewer the cut okra pods onto the bamboo or metal skewers. Don’t skewer them lengthwise, or you’ll only be able to get a few per skewer. Drizzle the okra with olive oil and use a brush to ensure that the okra is well covered. Turn the skewers over and be sure the olive oil is covering both sides. Then use your favorite seasoning blend (such as Tony Chachere’s, Old Bay, or a blend of salt, pepper, and garlic powder) to coat the cut side of the okra.
Place okra on the hot grill. Grill for 4-5 minutes, then flip skewers over. You should be able to see lovely grill lines (see skewer on left). Grill for another 3-4 minutes on other side.
Take off of the grill and serve immediately. The okra will cool down quickly, so be sure you’re ready to eat when these babies come off of the grill. For Weight Watchers participants, one serving of the grilled okra is 3 points due to the olive oil, which you could always go lighter on.

So give your kitchen some time off this summer and cook these babies on the grill. If someone else in your house is the designated griller… then you might even get a night off yourself. If you’ve never tried growing okra in your summer garden, I can’t recommend it enough. Okra is easy to freeze for later, a wonderful side dish, and even a healthy powerhouse in smoothies. It’s a winner all around.

I’d love to know your favorite way to cook or use okra. I’m always looking for new ways to use it in the kitchen. Have a great week and happy gardening!

Easy Grilled Okra

Grilled okra is a light and quick recipe that takes one of summer's best vegetables and pairs it with any meal in a hurry.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

1 lb fresh okra
Olive oil
Seasoning Blend of choice

Instructions

Begin by heating up the grill. While it heats up, cut the tops off of the okra pods, and slice them in half lengthwise.
Skewer the cut okra pods onto the bamboo or metal skewers. Don’t skewer them lengthwise, or you’ll only be able to get a few per skewer. Drizzle the okra with olive oil and use a brush to ensure that the okra is well covered. Turn the skewers over and be sure the olive oil is covering both sides. Then use your favorite seasoning blend (such as Tony Chachere’s, Old Bay, or a blend of salt, pepper, and garlic powder) to coat the cut side of the okra.
Place okra on the hot grill. Grill for 4-5 minutes, then flip skewers over. You should be able to see lovely grill lines (see skewer on left). Grill for another 3-4 minutes on other side.
Take off of the grill and serve immediately. The okra will cool down quickly, so be sure you’re ready to eat when these babies come off of the grill. For Weight Watchers participants, one serving of the grilled okra is 3 points due to the olive oil, which you could always go lighter on.

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[wpurp-searchable-recipe]Easy Grilled Okra – Summer meals are better with this quick and easy grilled okra. No need to heat up the kitchen, and it's the perfect side for any protein! WW SmartPoints=3 – okra, olive oil, seasoning blend (or salt, pepper, and garlic powder mix), , Begin by heating up the grill. While it heats up, cut the tops off of the okra pods, and slice them in half lengthwise. ; Skewer the cut okra pods onto the bamboo or metal skewers. Don't skewer them lengthwise, or you'll only be able to get a few per skewer. Drizzle the okra with olive oil and use a brush to ensure that the okra is well covered. Turn the skewers over and be sure the olive oil is covering both sides. Then use your favorite seasoning blend (such as Tony Chachere's, Old Bay, or a blend of salt, pepper, and garlic powder) to coat the cut side of the okra. ; Place okra on the hot grill. Grill for 4-5 minutes, then flip skewers over. You should be able to see lovely grill lines (see skewer on left). Grill for another 3-4 minutes on other side. ; Take off of the grill and serve immediately.; ; – – side dish – Southern – On the Side – Quick Meals – Recipes – okra – recipe – side dish – vegetables[/wpurp-searchable-recipe]

by Courtney 11 Comments

How to Freeze Fresh Okra

Not sure how to freeze okra? No worries, I’ve got you covered! Freezing okra is a quick and easy way to keep this veggie on hand in the kitchen well past those hot summer months that okra loves so much!

How to Freeze Fresh Okra

Okra, the jewel of the southern garden, can get a bad rap for being… well, slimy. You’ll find that most people are either okra lovers or haters, and thankfully most of my family is in the lover category. (Particularly if said vegetable is fried, ahem.) If you’ve ever grown okra in the garden, then you know that once it starts coming in, it can be difficult to eat it all.

Once you begin to harvest okra (check out my post here on when to harvest) you have a few days to use it before it starts turning brown and soft in spots. Learning how to freeze okra for use later is easy as pie thanks to my granny.

Granny imparted her okra-preserving wisdom on me for this “recipe.” She doesn’t keep track of oven temperatures or how many minutes it should be in there, so there was a bit of testing on my end. But the result was non-slimy okra ready to go in the freezer in 15 minutes from start to finish. Voila! So if you’re having a busy week, and unable to cook okra before it goes bad, here’s an easy way to know how to freeze okra for use later.

Can you freeze okra without cooking it?

The short answer is yes, but I would advise against it. The process of baking (or blanching if you want to go that route) helps break down enzymes in the okra. Breaking these down helps preserve the flavor and texture of the okra itself. So though it’s an extra step, I highly recommend it!

Instructions for Freezing Okra

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash your tender okra pods in cool water and drain in a colander. Once relatively dry, move them to a cutting board, and decide how you’d like to cut them.
Cut okra and place on rimmed baking sheet. I like to cut mine into 1/2 inch pieces for easy use in smoothies and soups. (If you’ve never had frozen okra in a smoothie, you’re totally missing out. The Trim Healthy Mama book introduced me to this.)
Place baking sheet in preheated oven for 3-4 minutes. You just want the okra pieces warmed through, not cooked.
Remove the pan from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. The moisture that was on the okra has dried a bit after the short time in the oven, and once cool, they are ready for the freezer.
Place cooled okra in labeled freezer bags, and use throughout the fall and winter as needed!

Okra Freezing Options:

If you prefer fried okra (or “oven fried”) then you can go ahead and coat your cooled okra in cornmeal before putting it in the freezer bags.
For freezing okra whole, cut off the tops and warm the pods in the oven. Then freeze as usual.

These freezing instructions are great for those growing okra in your home gardens. But it also is perfect if you happen to grab some fresh okra from your local farmer’s market. Fresh is fresh, and buying local veggies in season is always better than shipped-from-who-knows-where out of season. So buy up (or pick) that okra now and “put it up” (as we southerners say) for use later.

How long does it take to cook frozen okra?

There really isn’t much difference in the time it takes to cook frozen okra versus fresh. A few more minutes in the oven or in the pot/skillet should do the trick. For my oven roasted okra recipe, I would add just a few minutes, or until the edges begin to brown.

I’d love to know what your favorite okra dish is. Comment below and let me know, because I’m always looking for news ways to use this super vegetable!

Here’s my recipe for Oven Roasted Okra, and a guide for How to Harvest Okra and How to Freeze Tomatoes.

Yield: One Gallon Bag

How to Freeze Fresh Okra

Learn how to freeze okra and extend your harvest well into the fall and winter. Preserving the harvest by freezing is a quick and easy way to have okra on hand!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Active Time 5 minutes

Additional Time 20 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Materials

Fresh Okra
Ziploc Freezer Bags

Tools

Sheet Pan
Knife
Cutting Board

Instructions

Begin by washing okra. Then slice okra into 1/2 inch thick discs. Try to keep them uniform.
Place sliced okra on a sheet pan and place in preheated oven for 3-4 minutes or until just warmed through.
Remove okra from oven and allow to cool.
Once cool, scoop okra into freezer bags and place in freezer.
Once okra is frozen, use as needed!

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by Courtney 9 Comments

Easy Oven Roasted Okra

Okra, okra, mo-mokra, banana fana, o-hokra… and so it goes. It may not be an easy to word to rhyme or insert into song, but there’s something magical about those delicious green pods. While they’re not quite as versatile as shrimp (as we learned from Bubba in Forrest Gump), okra can be fried, pickled, stewed, roasted, grilled, or eaten raw. I’ve also recently used frozen pods in smoothies as a thickener. Who would have thought?? And this oven roasted okra recipe (or baked okra, for some) doesn’t disappoint!

For any recipe, or raw okra eating, you want to make sure you pick them at the right size. You’ll find great info on picking (or choosing at the farmers’ market) here. (Here’s a hint: pointer-finger sized is just about perfect!)

Oven Roasted Okra

While coating and frying cut okra is a southern staple, it’s not always the fastest way to get this veggie on your weeknight dinner table (not to mention the clean-up and “fried” smell left lingering in the house). So what’s an easy way to get this veggie prepped and cooked with hardly any fuss and no constant monitoring? Oven roasting.

I didn’t always think this was an option for okra. What about the slime? Will it get crisp? But as it turns out, my family loves oven roasted okra. In this version, the cumin provides a smoky flavor while the light seasoning of salt and pepper let this green jewel’s flavor shine through.

While oven roasted okra doesn’t have the same “crunch” as the fried variety, the true okra taste also isn’t overpowered by a thick coating. My husband would still prefer the classic fried okra every once in a while, but for me (and whoever is cleaning the kitchen) roasting can’t be beat.

Oven Roasted Okra Recipe

Fresh okra, cut into pieces

2-3 Tbsp Olive Oil

1 tsp salt (I love using mineral salt)

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp cumin

Baked Okra Recipe

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash your fresh okra pods and slice into 1/2 to 3/4 inch pieces. Spread okra onto a sheet pan in a single layer. Drizzle with olive oil and stir to coat.
In a small dish, mix salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cumin (I love the hint of “smokiness” that this adds). Mix. Sprinkle over the top of cut okra.
Place pan in preheated oven and roast for 15-20 minutes. You want the edges of the okra to be browned. Remove pan from oven and serve immediately.

For low-maintenance or busy cooks, this okra recipe is a winner. Our girly gardener, who loves all things fried and buttered, ate three helpings of this last week. I’m not going to complain… even though I would have liked to have had a few more myself.

I’d love to know about your favorite way to eat okra or what veggie you think tastes best roasted. Happy Gardening!

Easy Oven Roasted Okra

Crispy, oven roasted okra is just 20 minutes away with this easy and delicious baked okra recipe!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

4 cups okra, cut
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp ground cumin

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. While oven is heating, slice okra into 1/2-3/4 inch pieces.
Spread cut okra in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and stir okra to coat.
Mix salt, garlic powder, pepper, and cumin in small dish and stir well. Sprinkle on top of okra.
Bake 15-20 minutes or until okra is lightly browned on edges. Remove from oven and serve immediately.

How to Harvest Okra (or choose the best)!

Veggie harvesting brings the fruit of your labors to the kitchen. Some ripe veggies can be left in the garden for a day or even a week past “picking prime”: cucumbers, jalapenos, peppers, tomatoes (for the most part), and even zucchini (if you don’t mind bigger seeds). But one vegetable, I’m convinced, grows so quickly that you can barely turn your back on a not-quite-big-enough pod. If you leave an almost-there okra pod overnight, you’ll come back to a mammoth okra in the morning. Maybe it’s not quite that dramatic, but it certainly feels like I could stare at them and see them growing.

This jewel of southern gardens comes in spined and spineless varieties, and since I can rarely find my garden gloves when they’re needed, I opt for the spineless varieties. In fact for the past few years I have grown Clemson Spineless okra with great success. Our plants are five-feet tall now and still growing. Last year they topped out around seven feet, and I had to bend them down to cut the pods off.

So, how do you know if an okra pod is ready to be harvested (or chosen from the bin at your local farmers’ market)? Well, there are a few rules of thumb (or finger, if you prefer):

Look for pods no longer than your pointer finger. I realize we all have different sized hands and fingers, so if you know that your digits are larger than average, go with the pinkie. 2-3 inches in length is a great size for a tender pod (not including the stem).
Beware the crunchy okra. I’m not talking about fried (who doesn’t love crispy fried okra!?), but you do want to avoid overly large okra that are tough when gently squeezed. You can usually hear a faint crunch sound if you press them; this tells you the pod has become tough and “woody.”
Tough cutter. When harvesting, if you find that a pod’s stem is tough to cut off, then the pod itself is likely too tough to eat. Usually a “tough cutter” is a large pod as well.

Harvesting okra with a good pair of pruning shears is easy as pie (or crispy fried okra). If you happen to grow the spined variety, then be sure to also have on your favorite pair of gardening gloves. Tender okra are delicious straight out of the garden, split in half, with a little bit of salt, or you can cook them in a variety of ways.

While fried okra is number one in my husband’s opinion (this buttermilk and cornmeal battered recipe is our favorite), I’ve also been experimenting with oven roasted okra. It’s lighter and quicker to prep on a busy weeknight, so I’ll be passing that recipe along next week. Thanks to Pearl Barrett and Serene Allison, I’ve also been using frozen okra in smoothies as a thickener… who would have thought!?

I’d love to know if you’re growing some okra and your favorite way to prepare them. Happy Gardening!

okra

Summer Okra Harvest

Grilled Okra Recipe

Fresh Grilled Okra Ingredients

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Ingredients

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How to Freeze Fresh Okra

Can you freeze okra without cooking it?

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Oven Roasted Okra

Oven Roasted Okra Recipe

Baked Okra Recipe

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