Thursday, September 30, 2010

Time for some okra!!

I needed to use the okra before it went bad, but it was tough finding a recipe that wasn't for FRIED okra!  I appreciate that frying is the traditional way to make okra, but I am trying to be somewhat healthy.  So I was pretty excited when I found a recipe online for barbecued okra.  I was planning to put the link in here, but I am having some computer difficulties tonight so I don't have the link handy, but I will try to add it in if I can get those issues resolved.  There are no pictures tonight due to those issues either :-(

The barbecued okra recipe is basically a list of spices, including cayenne pepper.  All of the spices were mixed together, then I washed the okra and cut off the stems, tossed the okra in olive oil, then coated them with the spices.  I have some metal non-stick skewers so I put the okra on the skewers.  I decided to have a nice steak with the okra, so I prepared the steak next - a really lovely filet mignon.  I am a big fan of really good steak, and I like to taste the meat, so I only season my steak with sea salt, freshly cracked pepper, and some fresh minced garlic.  I set the okra and steak aside for a few minutes for the next task.

I decided to make the recipe that came with my CSA bag this week - basil, garlic & honey vinaigrette dressing.  This only took a few minutes, and was really good compared to the bottled salad dressing I normally use.  I prepared the dressing and then started up the grill.  I put the steak on for just a couple of minutes to sear on one side, then flipped it over and put the okra on.  I turned the okra after about 3 minutes and also flipped the steak.  I like my steak pretty rare so they both cooked for the same amount of time.  While they were grilling I prepared my salad.  I picked up some spinach leaves to add to my salad greens, so I mixed about 40% spinach, 40% green leaf lettuce and 20% arugula.  The arugula from Desert Roots Farm is good but it was a bit too strong for me last time when I mixed it 50/50 with the green leaf!  Tonight was a much better mix.  I added some chopped tomatoes and cucumbers, topped it off with dried cranberries and sliced almonds, then of course the vinaigrette I had just prepared.  That was just enough time for the rest of my dinner to be finished on the grill, and to pour a glass of Cabernet.

I hope I can add some pictures when my computer gets fixed because it sure looked lovely!  The okra was somewhat crispy on the outside and moist but not slimy on the inside.  And the coating was just enough spice for me (I might decrease the cayenne pepper next time, I'm not too good with spicy stuff!)  There was enough steak and okra for 2 meals for me, so I'll be eating leftovers tomorrow.  I think this was a pretty healthy dinner, since okra has a lot of good nutritional value, which I didn't ruin by breading and frying it.  A little bit of steak is good for you now and then, and of course salad is great.  I would definitely recommend grilling okra!

I still have eggplant and black-eyed peas to prepare over the next few days before it goes bad.  I have a couple of recipes in mind, but please let me know if you have suggestions!

10/1 update: here's a pic of the steak and okra after it was barbecued:

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