Fried Okra Recipe in the Skillet - A Classic Southern Favorite! (2024)

FAQs

Do you thaw frozen okra before breading? ›

Frozen okra needs to be thawed completely before cooking, but just be warned, the thawed okra will be wet (which can make it mushy). We recommend draining it and patting it dry completely with paper towels before breading and frying.

Okra is a nutritious vegetable that can be cooked by boiling or frying. Regardless of your cooking method, wash and slice your okra first. You can boil okra in slightly salted water. You can coat okra in cornmeal and then fry it in a frying pan.

Frozen okra has a softer texture, which is excellent for soups and stewed okra but not for deep-frying. If you must use frozen, thaw the okra first. Then, thoroughly drain and pat dry.

The moistened okra adheres to the breading during frying. Breading does not stick to dry okra. And in my opinion, buttermilk makes a breading which is too thick which also causes the breading to fall off.

Place okra in a saucepan; add enough water to cover the okra and salt to taste; bring the water to boil. Cover the pan and cook eight to 10 minutes or until the okra is tender. Drain well and, if desired, toss with a little butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To soak okra, pour 125ml (1/2 cup) vinegar into a bowl. Add 500g okra (the ratio of vinegar to okra is 125ml vinegar to every 500g okra). Turn the okra to coat. Set aside for 30 minutes to soak.

Extra cooking will not make it tender. Pick your okra before it gets 6--7 inches long. The tender ones tend to be the youngest and shortest.

Trim the okra ends, then cut each one into 1cm pieces. Heat the oil in a large frying pan, then tip in the okra, keeping the heat relatively high. Shake the pan so the okra starts to fry on all sides. Fry for about 8 mins, shaking every now and then, and turning the heat down if you need to.

Blood clotting: Vitamin K aids in blood clotting, and okra's high vitamin K content may interact with blood-thinning medications such as Coumadin (warfarin). People on blood thinners should be cautious and consult their doctor before incorporating okra into their diet.

But since it's often fried in bacon drippings, frying oil and Crisco, fried okra definitely isn't healthy. It's loaded with saturated fats and trans fats, which raise your bad (LDL) cholesterol levels and lower your good (HDL) cholesterol levels.

Is okra a Southern thing? ›

Okra was brought over to the United States by enslaved West Africans, first to the Caribbean and then the mainland. It was prized in Creole cooking for its thickening aspects. Okra became a Southern mainstay in cooking and agriculturally, perfectly at home in the South's humid, subtropical climate.

Combine dry ingredients (salt, pepper, cornmeal) in another medium-sized bowl and mix that up. Coat the frozen okra pieces with the egg/buttermilk combo. Then transfer to the cornmeal mixture and coat until covered. Place about 1/4 cup oil in a cast iron skillet and heat over medium heat for three to five minutes.

I start by letting my frozen okra thaw out a bit before breading. As I said before, I always wash my veggies before cookin' them! So, wash that okra, lay it out on some paper towel to dry, and then you're ready for the buttermilk.

IF FLOUR AND CORNMEAL ARE MIXED: dredge okra in beaten eggs, then dredge in flour-cornmeal mixture. IF FLOUR AND CORNMEAL ARE APPLIED SEPARATELY: dredge okra in flour, then egg, then cornmeal. Place okra in heated oil and fry on medium heat until golden brown Stir occasionally so all sides get browned.

If you plan to fry okra later, after blanching, slice pods crosswise and dredge with cornmeal or flour. Freeze slices on a parchment-lined tray before placing into freezer bags. Frozen blanched okra works well in gumbo, boiled, stewed, smothered, or fried.