Today I’m sharing a third and final recipe from my Modern Flavours of Arabia review – Okra and Sautéed Tomatoes or Bamia bil zeit. Okra is not something I’ve cooked with before, in fact I’d never tried okra before either. As I’m always looking to explore my culinary tastes that immediately drew me to wanting to try this recipe.
Okra, sometimes referred to as “lady’s fingers” is a flowering plant from the mallow family, with the edible part of the plant being the seed pod. Available in both green and a dark red colour, okra is low in calories, with only 30 cal per 100 g. It also contains no saturated fats or cholesterol, is a rich source of dietary fiber and is high in vitamin C and vitamin k. When cooked, okra releases a sticky substance, sometimes referred to oh so enticingly as slime or goo, that can be used to thicken soups and stews.
This recipe contains a good deal of garlic, which I adore, but surprisingly when I tasted the finished dish it didn’t taste anywhere near as garlicky as I expected. And as per the suggestion in the book, it does taste better the next day when the flavours have had a chance to develop.
By the way, don’t forget to enter my Modern Flavours of Arabia giveaway for your chance to win this beautiful cookbook.
So tell me, have you tried okra?
Okra & Sautéed Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 10 cloves of garlic finely sliced
- 4 tbs of extra virgin olive oil
- 400 g of okra
- 6 tomatoes chopped
- 1 cloves head of garlic separated and unpeeled
- 1 tsp of cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp of allspice
- 2 tbs sugar
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place a large frying pan over a medium heat and add the olive oil and garlic and sauté until the garlic is soft. Add the okra and cook for 5 minutes, stirring gently, so as not to break. Add the chopped tomatoes, unpeeled cloves of garlic, cinnamon, allspice, sugar, salt and pepper and reduce to a simmer. Cover and leave to cook for 15 minutes .
- Serve cold or at room temperature.
Nutrition
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com says
April 22, 2012 at 2:09 amThat looks absolutely YUM!! I love all-spice and never thought of using it in an okra recipe 🙂
Magic of Spice says
April 18, 2012 at 4:50 amI adore both okra and garlic, so I am very much wanting to try this dish! It looks so delicious, and as always…beautiful photos!
Faye says
April 18, 2012 at 1:35 amThank you for posting this glorious picture and recipe of Okra and Tomatoes. Being a USA Southerner , we eat the stuff with the flair you have presented here. The all spice and cinnamon… maybe I’ll try.
Aunt Clara says
April 16, 2012 at 12:31 pmI grew up eating okra, and have a couple of recipes in my own blog, but I have to admit yours look absolutely scrumptious. I will have to try this.
Cherine says
April 16, 2012 at 3:55 amOne of my favorite dishes!
Asmita says
April 15, 2012 at 12:55 amMy mouth is watering looking at these pictures. Yummy!!!
thelittleloaf says
April 14, 2012 at 10:01 pmI absolutely love okra but my success with it has been mixed – sometimes I’ve found that sliminess just overpowers what I’m making. In the right hands though, and with the right recipe, it’s delicious. Definitely going to try this stew, it looks right up my street!
msihua says
April 14, 2012 at 2:09 pmI love Okra! Or as we call them, ladies fingers.. mMmmmmmm
[email protected] says
April 14, 2012 at 12:48 pmI quite like Okra but usually eat it out or at my friends mother’s house who makes something very similar to this recipe. It is delicious but I didn’t know it had so many added health benefits 🙂
Amanda says
April 14, 2012 at 11:10 amI was frightened by a meal containing okra when I was young and impressionable and am still very cautious about it now, but your pics are just amazing Jen!
cc11 says
April 14, 2012 at 10:58 amI have also never tried okra before, but if I see some now I have a recipe to try out 🙂
Rosa says
April 13, 2012 at 8:12 pmA fabulou dish! I have never cooked okra.
Gorgeous pictures!
Cheers,
Rosa
Lizzy (Good Things) says
April 13, 2012 at 7:12 pmYum!