stewed okra & tomatoes

Okra is a strange, pod-like vegetable that is commonly eaten in the Southern United States, Africa and other tropical regions. When I was deciding what vegetable to make to go with my Jamaican Jerk Chicken Bowls, stewed okra seemed like a nice fit. If you've never eaten okra before, it can seem a little weird at first. It has an almost hairy texture on the outside when raw, is filled with lots of round, ball-like seeds and, most importantly, it has TONS of soluble plant fiber... which feels like a sticky goo.

Are you turned off yet?

I hope not. Okra is really quite delicious, has a wonderful texture that stands up to cooking and all of that gooey plant fiber is EXCELLENT for your diet (it binds to bad cholesterol and carries it out of your body). Okra can be prepared a plethora of different ways including frying, stewing/smothering, pickling (my favorite!) or adding to soups, stews and gumbos as a thickener (another attribute of that gooey plant fiber). This particular recipe is a super quick, "dump and pour" recipe that you can have ready in under 30 minutes. For that reason, this makes an excellent week night vegetable side dish. Spoon it over a bed of rice and you can also turn it into a great vegetarian meal. YUM.




Total Recipe cost: $2.88
Servings Per Recipe: 6
Cost per serving: $0.48
Prep time: 0 min. Cook time: 20 min. Total: 20 min.

INGREDIENTS		COST
1 lb.	fresh or frozen okra	$1.50
1 can (10 oz.)	rotel tomatoes (tomatoes w/chiles)	$0.88
1 can (8 oz.)	tomato sauce	$0.33
1 cube	bouillon	$0.12
1 Tbsp	butter	$0.05
TOTAL		$2.88

STEP 1: In a large skillet, dissolve one bouillon cube (vegetable or chicken flavored) in one cup of water over medium/high heat.

STEP 2: Once the bouillon is dissolved, add the frozen, cut okra (see photo below) and simmer over medium/high heat for about 5 minutes. The sticky plant fiber will mix with the bouillon and help to thicken the sauce once the tomatoes are added (it won't seem slimy once everything is done, I promise).

STEP 3: Pour in the can of Rotel (tomatoes with green chiles), the tomato sauce and butter. Stir to combine the ingredients and simmer for 5-10 minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened to your liking.




Step By Step Photos


The quickest way to prepare this is to use frozen okra like the bag above. Of course, if it's okra season and you can buy it fresh and inexpensively, simply wash and cut the okra and proceed with the recipe as usual.


Simmer the okra pieces in the broth that was made by dissolving one bouillon cube in one cup of water. Simmer for about 5 minutes or until the okra has softened.


Add the Rotel tomatoes and butter. You can actually eat it just like this (it is very vibrant and pretty this way) or add the tomato sauce to make a thicker more tomato-y sauce.


Add the tomato sauce and simmer until the liquid has thickened slightly.