Roast okra with spicy tomatoes recipe
When cooked just right, okra is plump and tender, with a flavour somewhere between asparagus and aubergine. Their soft texture is perfect for squashing between warm flatbreads. Here, the fruit – yes, technically a fruit – is stirred through a fragrant tomato sauce.
To avoid any unwanted gloopiness – which has, regrettably and unfairly, come to tarnish okra's reputation – be sure not to trim the stalks too close to the head, so they remained sealed.
Recipe from Zaitoun: Recipes and Stories from the Palestinian Kitchen by Yasmin Khan. Published by Bloomsbury on 12 July 2018, RRP £26.
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp light olive oil
- 1 pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 onion, finely sliced
- 0.5 tsp coriander seeds
- 0.5 tsp cumin seeds
- 0.2 tsp ground allspice
- 3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
- 0.2 tsp chilli flakes
- 400 g can of plum tomatoes
- 2 tsp caster sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, to serve
- 500 g okra
- 4 tbsp light olive oil
- 1 pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 onion, finely sliced
- 0.5 tsp coriander seeds
- 0.5 tsp cumin seeds
- 0.2 tsp ground allspice
- 3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
- 0.2 tsp chilli flakes
- 14.1 oz can of plum tomatoes
- 2 tsp caster sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, to serve
- 17.6 oz okra
- 4 tbsp light olive oil
- 1 pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 onion, finely sliced
- 0.5 tsp coriander seeds
- 0.5 tsp cumin seeds
- 0.2 tsp ground allspice
- 3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
- 0.2 tsp chilli flakes
- 14.1 oz can of plum tomatoes
- 2 tsp caster sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, to serve
- 17.6 oz okra
Details
- Cuisine: Palestinian
- Recipe Type: Okra
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation Time: 20 mins
- Cooking Time: 40 mins
- Serves: 4
Step-by-step
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/390°F/gas mark 6.
- Trim the okra by cutting off the stalks, but do so carefully by not slicing too close to the main pod: you want to keep each pod sealed so the seeds don’t spill out, as this way the okra will remain firm while cooking.
- Place the okra on a large baking tray, drizzle over 2 tablespoons light olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Roast for 15–20 minutes until the okra is tender but still firm.
- Meanwhile, make the tomato sauce. Place the remaining 2 tablespoons light olive oil in a frying pan and gently fry the onion over a medium heat for 10 minutes, until it is soft.
- Toast the coriander and cumin seeds by placing them in a dry pan over a low heat and stirring for a minute or so, until the aromas are released.
- Crush the toasted seeds in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder and add them to the onion with the allspice, garlic and chilli flakes. Fry for 2 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, sugar, lemon juice, ¾ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Once the okra is out of the oven, add it to the tomato sauce and cook for a further 5 minutes, splashing in a little hot water if the sauce looks a bit dry.
- Taste, adjust the seasoning and drizzle with a generous glug of extra virgin olive oil just before serving.
This recipe is from Zaitoun: Recipes and Stories from the Palestinian Kitchen by Yasmin Khan. Published by Bloomsbury on 12 July 2018, RRP £26. Photography by Matt Russell.
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