Okra Indian style

Rich said he hated Okra when I first met him . He said he used to eat boiled okra with salt and it was quite slimy and disgusting . I said my Indian okra would change his perception of this vegetable . I have loved okra ever since I was young. It is one of my favourite vegetables . My mom used to sauté the okra with just a few spices and I ate it with rice as a side dish. Once I made this version of okra, Rich was an okra convert! He now asks for this dish all the time.

Ingredients 

Okra - 30 ( or whatever you have - fresh is better than frozen but you can use frozen if that’s all you have )

Tip : to ensure the okra is not too ripe ( which makes it fibrous and unedible - try to break the tip off the okra with your hands and if it doesn’t break then do not pick that one !!) 

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tbsp 

Sambar powder - 1.5 tbsp ( you can get this powder at an Indian store or online) - this can be spicy so use a little bit at first and then based on taste you can add more 

Salt - to taste 

Vegetable oil - 2 tbsp 

Instructions 

1. First wash the okra and dry it on a paper towel. This reduces the sliminess of the okra 

2. Then cut both ends off ( the tapered tip and hard stem)

3. Then cut okra into thin ( but not too thin slices). I’m linking a video here on how to cut  okra 

You can follow the instructions but cut the okra a little thinner than in the video as shown below 

4. Take a sauce pan and place on the stove on medium heat 

5. Add a tablespoon of oil and let it heat up for about a minute ( don’t let it heat up too long and get smoky - this means it is overheated and you can burn your vegetable )

6. Now add the okra to the oil and sauté it

7. After initially sautéing it move the okra to the sides and make a little open area on the middle 

8. Put about 1/2 tbsp of oil in the middle . This is to roast the spices in since in IT IS ALWAYS IMPORTANT TO ROAST THE SPICES TO ENSURE IT DOESN’T TASTE RAW !! ( I only emphasise this because in American restaurants and cooking shows people just add raw spices to the dish , like adding curry powder at the end of cooking a dish as they take it off the stove - this gives an awful bitter raw taste !!!!). Add the sambar powder , turmeric powder and salt to this oil and mix it in.

9. Now once the spices are roasted ( 30 sec) then mix it in with the okra well and sauté it 
10. Keep sautéing it so it doesn’t stick to the bottom. You can add a little water ( just sprinkle some) so as to prevent the spices and okra from sticking to the pan. 

11. Periodically sauté and turn over the okra to prevent it from burning 

12. It takes about 10-12 minutes to cook through and also get roasted . The green color is still maintained but there is a little char on it. 

13. Taste it and add salt to taste. If you want to add more spice repeat step 8 . Do not just sprinkle spices on top ! 

14. Okra poriyal ( Tamil fried okra ) is ready to serve