Call them okra, ladies’ fingers, Bamiya (in Greek and Arabic), Bhindi (in Hindi) or call them slimy, I don’t care. I love okra stewed, fried, braised, and roasted. If not properly cooked, then I can see why people will steer away from this vegetable, however, my mother carefully prepared these, and we never really felt the slime.
Fresh cut garden okra.
It wasn’t until I started traveling and landed in India. I tried Bhindi Masala and just instantly fell in love again with Okra. I was already accustomed to eating them braised with onions and tomatoes, however, the masala and Indian spices really elevated this dish.
I then made it over to Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, and Lebanon, and fell in love again with okra. I tried them stewed and fried with just onions and coriander (cilantro) and garlic and lemon. I have adapted this dish to my taste and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. You can use fresh or frozen (already sliced) okra for this dish. Although fresh work, so does the frozen kind; they should be sliced.
Sliced fresh garden okra.
You can serve this with a grilled steak, baked chicken, or even some pan-fried fish. You can also eat this hot, warm, room temperature, or even cold. The main ingredients are olive oil, lemon, garlic and fresh chopped coriander (cilantro).
