Roasted Okra
My new favorite way to eat okra is so simple and easy that it almost can't be called a recipe. All you have to do is wash the okra, put it in an oiled baking dish, sprinkle it with seasonings, and bake it. The beauty of this is that no cutting is involved, so you never come in contact with the dreaded slime!
The okra come out slightly crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and they're perfect finger food (like green French fries, but don't use ketchup). Even my husband, who says that okra is not his favorite vegetable, loved these. For me they're the perfect side dish or light lunch--super-easy, fat-free, and delicious.
Roasted Okra
about 1/2 pound of small, whole okra per person
salt to taste
pepper to taste
olive oil spray
First, start with the smallest okra you can find. Larger okra tends to be woody, which wouldn't work in this recipe.
Preheat the oven to 450 F. Spray a shallow baking dish with olive oil, add okra, and season to taste. Give the okra one quick (1/2 second) spray with olive oil, and put them into the oven. Bake, stirring every 5 minutes, until okra is browned on all sides, about 15 minutes. Serve hot out of the oven.
You can also jazz these up with spice blends such as garam masala, curry powder, chili powder, Creole seasonings, or jerk seasonings--whatever your taste demands. But simple salt and pepper is amazingly good and allows the fresh flavor of the okra to shine through.
Tags: vegan recipes vegetarian cooking food fat-free Eat to Live
Labels: CORE, eat to live, gluten-free, Ridiculously Easy
posted by SusanV at 7:29 AM
33 Comments:
OH so simple! Bookmark! Hmm. Skip the bookmark. Head for farmers market, need tomatoes anyway.
I've been craving okra lately, so this looks REALLY good. :)
i've never gotten around to trying okra, but it's one of my mother's favorite vegetables. i think it's time to try it. :-)
i do this exact thing but with asparagus, and that comes out really delicious.
I don't think I have ever had okra that wasn't breaded and fried. I will have to try it this way, it looks pretty darn good! :-)
Do you trim the ends before eating?
Wow that sounds (and looks) really good. I've never tried okra before, because everytime I've seen it cooked it's really slimy and smells awful, so I swore to never try it, but maybe I'll take it back and try them. Do you think frozen, thawed okra would work for this?
zenpawn, I used them untrimmed, but if there had been any excess stem on them, I would have trimmed it off.
Orangie, I have a feeling that frozen okra wouldn't work for this, but I haven't tried it. It just seems that when it thaws, it gets very soft--not the firm texture of the fresh okra. If you try it, please post a comment telling how it came out.
Thanks for your comments, everyone!
I had okra for the first time last year at a few restaurants and fell in love. So then I tried it at home but didn't know what I was doing-- (verdict- it wasn't a good experiment). Now with your cooking expertise I can't wait to give okra another at home try. Thanks!
-Teresa
I always had okra in stew type dishes, or stewed by its own (ie, only cooked okras, with onions, garlic, spices).
This method sounds great, thanks for the idea, I am sure going to try, I like okra a lot! Yum!
I even have a little bag full in my fridge right now!
Ana
I really like roasted foods. just adds so much flavor
teddy
Sounds great! I've been looking for a way to enjoy okra (other than fried...), so I'll probably make this immediately!
This sounds absolutely delicious! I love fried okra and this sounds like the perfect alternative. I never thought to bake them. Thank you!
This was absolutely delicious! You're right..I felt like I was eating green french fries!
I tried this and it's WONDERFUL and so easy. Thank you!
I discovered roasted okra just a few months ago. It's really simple and really tasty!
Great idea Susan! I've a great overabundance of Okra in my garden, although I've cooked it Indian style (stuffed with coconut/almonds,spices), Southern (either cornmeal-coated slices fried) or a creole/cajun gumbo, I never thought to roast it.
I love roasting fresh veggies from the garden, and I added okra "chunks" to eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, onions, and potatoes... just marvelous. I did add a little oil, little tamari, little balsamic vinegar, dusting of pepper.
Thanks much for the idea... Best, Mark
Thank you for introducing me to okra. I made these for lunch today. A new addition to my roasted veggies addiction. ;)
This is so tasty and simple. Thanks for the "recipe." It will certainly become a part of my rotation!
I have now made the roasted okra twice. It is really delicious! Thanks, Susan! :)
When I saw some okra at the produce store last week, I decided to try your "unrecipe". The hubby and I both enjoyed it so much I bought more today and I'm really looking forward to it.
With bindhi bahji, this is now a favourite orka dish at la Casa de Snowpea.
I've made this about five times already. I think it works best with salt and pepper too.
It's totally yummy. I'll be sorry when I can't find any more okra this summer!
perfect. where have you been all my life. i've been looking - no searching - for a recipe like this. hey, i love your blog. it's great. but don't read my last post, ok? it's so not what you want to see. but tomorrow you'll approve of my dinner that i'm making tonight. does this make ANY sense?
Tried them......LOVED THEM!!!
who knew okra could be so easy? i added a teaspoon of cumin seeds along with the salt and pepper. the roasted cumin seeds added a nice little flavor kick!
-alex
I never tried okra until I moved to north carolina last year and I went to a local farmers market. The vendor told me to try it raw - it was so yummy!
They don't start to get that natural goo until they are cut so as long as you keep them whole they will have a different flavor.
I cant wait to try this recipe tonight!
my grandma taught me that you can sprinkle fresh Lemon juice on Okra when cooking with it, and it cuts down on the "slime". i don't know how it works, but it does. i suppose you could use vinegar too. i guess thats why pickled Okra doesn't seem to be so slimy...
I used frozen whole okra and it still worked great.
I loved this! I like okra anyway (the slime doesn't bother me) but this was an awesome quick and easy recipe and one that would make okra naysayers give it a try!
sounds good to me! I am growing okra in my garden this year, so I am excited to give it a try.
I love the "green french fries" idea. wonder if my kids will agree?!
I'm trying new foods and bought some okra at the farmers' market. Found this recipe and tried it.
Awesome! Totally dee-licious!
No slime, sweet and tasty.
Okra gets added to the regular rotation.
Thanks for a great recipe!
I am a native Texan, but I must be a terrible Southerner, because when I got a bag of these curious-looking little veggies in my CSA box this week, I had no idea what they were! I hadn't a clue how to find out either- how do you google search "What the heck is this veggie??" I enlisted the help of my neighbor, and finally solved the mystery... So now that I know what it is, I also know how to cook it!
My kids love this! Okra is also nutrient rich, so having another way of serving it is just great! We eat them like french fries!
We roast okra on the grill every summer as soon as we can pick it from the garden. Olive oil, some herbs, salt, whatever. It's always great.
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