Here’s a redo of a classic Caribbean way of cooking Okra, which I originally share when this blog first started back in 2009. If you recall, back then I mentioned how much I disliked okra (say ochro in the Caribbean) as a young fella growing up on the islands. Funny how your taste-buds change as you get older, especially when you move to a different country where you can get the stuff you had in abundance. Basically when you don’t have something, you realize how much you wish you did or at least gave it a try during those abundant younger years.
You’ll Need…
2-3 lbs okra (sliced)
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup prepared salted cod
1 onion (diced)
3 cloves garlic (sliced or crushed)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 scotch bonnet pepper (sliced thin)
Important! If doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the entire list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.
Heat the oil in a wide pan (use a non stick pan or you’ll need more olive oil) on a med/low flame, then add the pieces of prepared salted cod to the pan. Stir well, reduce the heat to low and cook for 3-5 minutes. Then add the black pepper, scotch bonnet pepper, onion and garlic and cook for a further 3-5 minutes.
Trim off the ends and stems of the okra (discard) then slice into 1/2 inch pieces. If you want to prevent most of the ‘slime” that Okra tends to have, you may air-dry the sliced okra for a few hrs in the sun. I didn’t. Turn up the heat to med high at this point and start adding the okra to the pan. Stir well.
Cook with the lid off as we’re not trying to add any moisture to the pan. Stir well.
After about 25 minutes your okra should have golden brown edges and fully cooked. You may check for salt and adjust as I didn’t add any salt. The remaining salt in the salted cod was enough for me. You may also choose to continue cooking until “dried” down (as we say) or as in my case.. I stopped.
Remember to wash your hands immediately after handling scotch bonnet peppers with soap and water.
Do you own a copy of my cookbook ?- The Vibrant Caribbean Pot 100 Traditional And Fusion recipes Vol 2
The absolute only way I would engage in any dish with ochro (Okra) growing up, was callaloo and in some of the soups my mom would make on a Saturday. However that didn’t stop my mom from cooking fry ochro with and without saltfish (dry salted cod). We had a small garden (aka kitchen garden) at the back of our home and one of the vegetables we grew was ochro, so we always had a ready supply. However they were a bit different than the ones we get here in the supermarkets in Canada. Ours were a lighter green in colour (almost yellowish) and about 2 to 3 times longer, when ready to reap.
