Okra

I am quite certain that have mentioned that I am from Alabama before.  I am very proud to be from Alabama.  I want to be very clear though that I am not from the part of Alabama that can not spell Mississippi.  :) (see link if you dont know what I am talking about!)  Now before I go on I need to recognize that I can not spell so normally I should not cast stones.  All of that goes out the window when an Auburn fan has an opportunity to make fun of the other school in the state.  .....I digress.....

Being from Alabama, I have had a lot of Okra in my life.  I can not say I loved it growing up unless it was battered and fried.  What is not delicious battered and fried??  Well this Jan I started adding it to many of the soups I have been making and loved it!  Okra is a great way to thicken a soup without calories.  I went to my friend Hannah's house recently and her Georgia native hubby cooked up some teriyaki Okra that was delicious!  I have made it every week since.  I wanted to let all my blog readers in on the recipe so you too can find that Okra is not always slimy and furry!

California has many fruits and veggies that are a regular occurrence here that are not so other places....namely artichokes (I had the best grilled artichokes today.....mmmmmm!!!), asparagus (and I am not talking about the canned stuff,) and avocados.  I have not been able to get on the Ca band wagon of avocados....dont love the taste or texture but here they put the green slim on everything!

Here is Chuck (now my) way to cook Okra!  Hope you enjoy!

A whole bunch of Okra washed and whole  (I usually buy all they have at Whole Foods cause its the only store I can find it at.)

I put it in a nonstick skillet with about 1-2 T of smart balance light (see picture below)

I cook it on med low (I use 4 on my electric burner) and saute it around for 30-40 min til the okra starts to get soft but is not falling aprt yet.  

Pour in about 1/4 cup of teriyaki sauce (you can see below's picture for brand I use) and turn up the heat to high.  Stirring constantly you want the sauce to heat up and caramelize sortof on the okra.  End product will look like:

It sores well in containers to take to work the next day!  I love this stuff and have had just about everyone at work try it cause I love it so much!  Let me know if you try it and what you think.  

Murn