Joybee, What's for Dinner? : Bhindi (Okra) Masala

A vegetarian Indian dish made with okra and spices. A delicious, healthy, and filling meal.

(Re-post of original from 1/11/13. Edited for grammar, updated pictures, tweeables, pinnable image, and like posts. Had 96 views)

Okra. It's one of those vegetables I only knew one thing to do with and that is batter and fry. I grew up in North Carolina and we love our fried okra. Every spring my dad planted a garden in our yard and okra was one of the usual vegetables. By summer, we would have so much okra, but I don't remember having it any other way than fried. I'm not complaining I love fried okra it's one of those foods I look forward to whenever I go home.

There's more to #okra than frying: Bhindi (Okra) Masala #Indianfood [Tweet this]

Not long after moving to Honolulu and finding Chinatown, I found a market there that had okra. I was excited and curious. Fried okra isn't a common food here so how is it used? It took me some Googling to find an Indian recipe site that had many dishes with okra as the main ingredient. I like Indian food and I like okra so what could go wrong? Once I tried Bhindi Masala I fell in love and it's much healthier than deep fat frying okra. This is a recipe I make frequently. If you like okra I urge you to try this recipe.

Like Okra? Try this #Vegetarian #Indianrecipe: Bhindi Masala [Tweet this]

Bhindi Masala

Cook time: 20 minutes or fewer
Servings: 3-4

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp ghee, or oil of choice
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp minced ginger
1 large onion, chopped
1 Tbsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala powder
1/8 tsp ghost chili masala, or hot chilli powder of you choice (if you can handle more heat by all means add more)
1 pound okra, chopped (about 3 cups)
3 dashes Worcestershire sauce, or juice of 1/2 a lime
Salt to taste

Heat ghee (clarified butter) in large frying pan (I think ghee adds better flavor, but it has 9g saturated fat per tablespoon and it's not vegan so you can use any oil that withstands high heat instead).

Add cumin seeds and stir cooking until they start to sputter. Then, add the ginger and garlic. Stir until just fragrant (it won't take long) and add the onions.

Mix the onions around for a minute or two until they soften. Add the spices and let cook for a little while until fragrant then add the okra and salt.

Stir and let cook until the okra softens, add Worcestershire sauce (or lime juice) and keep stirring. I add about 1/2 cup of water to deglaze the pan and make a bit of sauce then turn off the heat (the hot pan will evaporate most of the water, but it make things a little less dry as well as helps cool the pan).

Serve immediately over rice garnished with cilantro and with naan on the side. Makes 3-4 servings.

Enjoy.