Thursday, July 14, 2011

GARDENING: OKRA

Can the garden afford any thing
 more delightful to view
than those forests of asparagus,
artichokes, lettuce, pease,
 beans and other legumes
 and edulous plants so different in
colour and of such various shapes,
 rising at it were from the dead
 and piercing the ground
 in so many thousand places
 as they do, courting the admiration
or requiring the care of
the diligent Gardiner.
-  Stephen Switzer,
The Practical Gardener, 1727

Okra is a vegetable
we plant every year
and we plant a lot
of it! It is my husband's
favorite vegetable so there
are rows of okra growing
in my fields. Is okra
a  southern thing?  I'm not
sure, but I do know that
it is planted in most
gardens around here.
Okra loves hot, dry weather
to grow and southern summers
are perfect for it.
The leaves of the okra plant
are 'itchy' so you need to wear
long sleeves to cut the
pods. Okra should must be
harvested daily since
the pods double in
size over night and can
become tough and 'woody'
if allowed to grow too
large.
Okra is a vegetable that
can be prepared in many
different ways which I
appreciated since it is
a prolific grower. I love
to roast it in the
oven with just a little
olive oil and salt and
pepper for about 15 minutes.
My husband loves it dusted
with corn meal, salt and pepper
and then deep fried in oil.
 It is great cooked
with tomatoes and
onions and served over
rice or thrown in a pot
of stew or gumbo.
Besides freezing, we
also pickle a lot of
okra which is a nice
change from cucumber
pickles.
What are you growing
this week?
xx


17 comments:

  1. Okra! Every time I see okra it reminds me of the south. I have yet to hear or see of anyone growing it up in these parts.

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  2. Yes, I think Okra must be just a thing of the south. I'm sure there are northerners that grow it but I don't know a single one! :) You've given it a great tribute, maybe by your raves we'll see more of it this side of the country!

    Blessings, Debbie

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  3. Love my okra too. Planted some red and a less-slimy version... all from rareseeds.com... we have had wierd weather so my plants are short and producing. I am going to try okra pickles for the first time this year. Someone will eat them :). Beautiful photos Tracey!

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  4. I have been living in the South for only about 6 years but I never ate okra. I heard a lot of bad things about it and it scares me a little. What does it taste like? The blossoms sure are beautiful.
    I seem to be growing mostly kittens these days. ;)

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  5. I like okra in soups but have never had it made any other way. I do not think it is grown readily in PA but I am not sure.... I love the photos and the blossom is beautiful!

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  6. hmm..I've never tried okra, but have seen it in the shop here. I'll give it a try!

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  7. Beautiful pictures, as always! I have never cared for okra (my mother just boiled it until it was falling apart) but reading how you cook it makes me think I may need to give it a try! Okra is hard to find fresh in Oregon, especially in the valley where we have had rain for three days in a row now. Enjoy!

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  8. Oh! How I love Okra! We planted some too...but in ND I'm not sure we'll have a long enough season for it...we grew some last year and only harvested 9 pods...funny...

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  9. Just HOW okra grew never crossed my mind. maybe it's because I never heard of okra until a few years ago.
    I was surprized this morning to see it's mother plant. The leaves are not an unfamiliar size/shape but realize now that okra must be some way related to a squash.
    Thanks for my early-morning dose of knowledge, Tracey.
    hugs
    Gerry

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  10. Oh my goodness! I'd grow it just for the flowers :-) Of course, it wouldn't stand a chance up here. I'm sure I've never had it fresh, but I be it's divine!! We're just now picking our snow peas - a hand-full or two for snacks each morning. Ahhh, it's been a very slow start in our garden this year!

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  11. I've never tasted Okra...I sort of doubt it's grown up here. Now you've made me curious to give it a try!

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  12. I think it is a southern thing. I grew up eating my great aunt's pickled okra and still love it to bits. Okra and chicken gumbo is my fave gumbo. And stewed okra and tomatoes are divine! And on a less healthy note, nothing like fried okra...yum! A planter friend said he plants okra every year because it keeps the deer out of his garden - have you found this to be true?

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  13. I've never eaten okra. It sounds great.
    Gosh the flower is beautiful!x

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  14. Wow Tracey! Thanks for the okra lesson! Who knew they had such beautiful flowers. I love the licking the beater picture too. Whatcha makin'?

    Here is my moment: http://www.mental-chew.com

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  15. Wishing I could come for dinner and have some of your okra, I have never had it yet...Yet! You make it sound SO yummy! I will be looking for on my next trip to the grocer for sure!

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