Any OKRA lovers or haters out there?!
I have been a fan of food and cooking for as long as I can remember. There are very few foods that I would admit to disliking. One of those foods used to be okra. I wasn’t really exposed to Okra until moving to Virginia for medical school. The first few times I tried it, it was pretty slimy. I decided that it was not for me, and that was that. This is an experience that I am excited to share, especially with my patients, because I want to share that I get what it feels like to think that your mind cannot be changed about what you eat or the way you eat.
It wasn’t until years later when I was first dating my Southern husband, that he convinced me to try okra one more time, prepared his way. That was when I fell in love with okra (and maybe him too! Hey, food is powerful!) I changed my heart about okra because of the way it was prepared (less slimy and had a little crunch), but also because I appreciated the texture more over time. Food can be healthy, simple, AND delicious. Appreciation for new foods IS possible. If you don’t love veggies, keep trying, and try eating them in different ways. Getting at least 3-4 cups of veggies per day is one of the single most important things you can do for your health.
Now, go grab some okra!
Ingredients:
- 1 pound fresh Okra
- 2-3 Tbsp pasture butter
- Sea salt
Remember that cooking is an art, and taste a piece of your art to check for doneness, and saltiness before taking it off of the heat.
Instructions:
- Wash and cut the okra crosswise into 1/2-inch slices (you should have about 2 cups sliced okra.)
- Heat 1.5 Tbsp of butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Place the okra pieces in the pan and add the remaining butter in slices to the top of the veggies. The okra pieces should be mostly flat so that one of the sides can start to brown.
- Let sit without stirring for a few minutes. After about 2 minutes, check for brownness. Keep checking, and once there is a nice brown crispness to the bottoms, flip them over with a spatula.
- Continue stirring veggies occasionally over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. The pieces should be cooked, but not soggy.
- Add a few grinds of sea salt.
- Serve warm.
This dish can be a great snack, a side to roast chicken, or even a great accompaniment to a couple of eggs. Enjoy!!
