Okra

[Cole_Robbie]

My stepdad planted okra where he had dumped a big trailer of horse manure the previous winter, and the plants got comically big. They were 10' tall by the end of the summer. Okra thrives in marginal soil. If you plant it in your richest ground, you will grow okra trees.

[DonDuck]

Originally Posted by Rajun Gardener

Being a Cajun we don't just chop okra and throw it in gumbo. We smother it and add it to roux or just make a straight okra gumbo. Smothered okra is eaten here as a side dish or you can add seafood to it and make a thick stew, the cooked down okra makes a thick gravy/stew so it's a perfect fit for gumbo.

Try it cooked that way once and you'll be a fan if you like the fried okra taste.

I like the thickning idea with okra. I've only seen it floating in the watery creole gumbo. Any time I see gumbo on a restaurant menu, I always ask if it is a lite roux or dark roux gumbo. You would be surprised how many restaurant owners have no idea what I am talking about.


Is the reason Cowhorn okra the same reason Cowhorn peppers are named as they are?

[pmcgrady]

Originally Posted by DonDuck

I like the thickning idea with okra. I've only seen it floating in the watery creole gumbo. Any time I see gumbo on a restaurant menu, I always ask if it is a lite roux or dark roux gumbo. You would be surprised how many restaurant owners have no idea what I am talking about.


Is the reason Cowhorn okra the same reason Cowhorn peppers are named as they are?

When everyone figures out what okra is best, I will have tons of Sassafrass leaves to make file to mix with it and turn it into Gumbo!

[pmcgrady]

double post...

[Rajun Gardener]

Originally Posted by seaeagle

Thanks I think I will stay with this Okra for this year anyway. Just curious though as you have grown both you must like Cowhorn better. What is the difference and why do you prefer Fife Creek Cowhorn okra, if I may ask?

They grow here in the heat and rain. Granted the rain will slow pollination down when the blooms get wet but I've picked okra in rubber boots walking through 4 inches of water between the rows and the plants kept going and I've also picked when the temps were in the 100+ range in a drought. They just grow.

Side note: Okra loves nitrogen and should be side dressed at about 15" tall like corn, I learned that one year by chance when I had free nitrogen to use and they responded well.

[Worth1]

Don't overcrowd it either.

[Rajun Gardener]

Don, you might be interested in Choppee. Here's more info.


http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=48131

[DonDuck]

Rajun,


The Choppee looks interesting for a lot of reasons including the fact that while I am 6'2" tall, I am also 76 years old. At my age, I don't do ladders in the garden. Since I am the gardener in the family, they wouldn't find my body until fall. I prefer high production at low elevation.


I checked mr. google for some Choppee seed. A few seed providers claim to have it, but my knowledge of those providers is as limited as my knowledge of Choppee. Any suggestions or recommendations?

[Rajun Gardener]

PM your address and I'll send both types to you.

All okra will get tall especially if planted close together so space them out. Depending on how much okra you plan to harvest, you may have enough before the end of summer when they start getting tall.

[MrBig46]

When I read it I got a taste of okra. Next year, I would like to grow it and also try wasabi. I have seen the seeds at MMMM and so I will attend next year and my wish will be these seeds.
Vladimír

[ContainerTed]

Originally Posted by DonDuck

I used to be the same way on fried okra. When our kids were small, we would sit around watching the Dallas Cowboys play football and snacking on fried okra instead of popcorn. I like it in an egg wash and cornmeal. I don't like the batter most restaurants cook it in today. We also don't each much fried food today, so I guess it is good that we also like okra and tomatoes cooked together.

Nowadays, we always use a light flour coating and then into the egg wash and corn meal. I've even tried it MASA flour and while it's good and just a bit different, I keep coming back to what I grew up on.

Fried Okra also needs a lot of salt. It makes the flavor really pop.

[Worth1]

There are some fantastic Asian Indian recipes for okra.

Vladimir, the MMMM is great but why not try growing some this season? There's still plenty of time and I can send you seed, or you can request a particular variety in the wanted forum. I have Beck's Big Buck Horn and Jing Orange, which is both beautiful and delicious. I have a few others but am not sure the seed isn't crossed until I test it. Those two I'm sure of.

Edit: Don those two are offered to you as well!

[budfaux]

I grow Jing Orange and Burmese. Germinate seeds in wet paper towels, and plant in a 9 oz. plastic cups under T8 or T5 lights. I space plants about 12" apart in the ground. I work a bit of Garden-tone into each planting hole. Add more Garden-tone with added bone meal a couple months later. Mulched with wheat straw.
I'll snack on pods fresh off the plant in my garden or cook with a small amount of coconut oil in a skillet with ground black pepper and sea salt on top till they get a nice brown crust. No flour or breading. Sometimes I'll cook whole pods this way but usually slice them to 3/4"-1" lengths.
A stand of 40-50 okra plants with approximate spacing is a pretty neat sight, even if they didn't produce those slimy delectable pods.

[ContainerTed]

Originally Posted by budfaux

I grow Jing Orange and Burmese. Germinate seeds in wet paper towels, and plant in a 9 oz. plastic cups under T8 or T5 lights. I space plants about 12" apart in the ground. I work a bit of Garden-tone into each planting hole. Add more Garden-tone with added bone meal a couple months later. Mulched with wheat straw.
I'll snack on pods fresh off the plant in my garden or cook with a small amount of coconut oil in a skillet with ground black pepper and sea salt on top till they get a nice brown crust. No flour or breading. Sometimes I'll cook whole pods this way but usually slice them to 3/4"-1" lengths.
A stand of 40-50 okra plants with approximate spacing is a pretty neat sight, even if they didn't produce those slimy delectable pods.

My okra loving great nephew likes to put the whole pods on the grill and roast them. I haven't tried this as of yet, so I don't have the cooking particulars. But my brothers children and grandchildren rave about the taste.