Recipe: Okra and Tomatoes

I love okra.  Love it.  Fried okra was something I grew up viewing as a treat for when we were visiting family in the south.  I would choose it over dessert any day. 

For dinner last night, I cooked red beans and rice and sauteed up okra as our veggie side dish.  I adapted my recipe from an Okra, Corn and Tomatoes recipe in Danella Carter's Down Home Wholesome, a low-fat soul food cookbook.  I chose to omit the corn.  I hate corn.  Hate it.  It is the texture, not the flavor.  I included notes about adding in corn in case you really, really want to. 

Okra and Tomatoes

Okra and Tomatoes

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1 pound okra, trimmed or tops and tails and sliced crosswise into 1/4-inch rings
• 4 ears sweet corn, kernels removed (optional)
• 3 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions: 
In a large skillet, saute garlic in butter over medium heat until lightly browned.  Add okra and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  If adding corn, stir in kernels with 10 minutes remaining on the okra cook time.  Stir in tomatoes and salt and cook for an additional 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in the pepper.

Notes: 
I couldn't find fresh okra at our grocery store yesterday but there are always 1-pound bags in the freezer section.  Frozen okra is just fine and a good deal.  I think the bag I bought yesterday was only $1.15 and that makes six (ample) servings.  I would estimate that this dish ends up being less than $5 total. 
 
Okra is slimy.  That is one of the reasons that some people, including Chef Tom Colicchio, don't care for it.  If you cook okra properly, the end result is low on slime.  I consulted with google and found that adding something acidic (i.e. tomatoes) helps to break down the slime.  I'm not sure if all this talk about slime is helping my "okra is delicious" case but I promise that this recipe is worth a try.