Bhendi Fry

Bhendi Fry

Okra is one vegetable that my husband says a big yes to. All my childhood I was made to believe that eating okra improves one's math skills. I have no idea how true that is but it is definitely my family favorite vegetarian dish, and I guarantee it will be yours soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients:


Okra - 1 lb
Onion - 1 large
Curry leaves - few
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder - 2 tsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Dry coconut powder - 2 tbsp
Salt - to taste
Oil - 3 tbsp

Method:

1. Wash the okra and pat dry each okra with a paper towel. Chop them to 1/2 inch thick pieces and keep aside.
2. Heat a wide non-stick pan and pour the oil in it. After the oil is medium hot, add the cumin seeds and allow them to splutter.
3. Now add the chopped onion, some salt and saute till the onions turn translucent. 
4. Add in the curry leaves, ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw flavor of the ginger garlic paste is gone.
5. Add the turmeric powder, red chilli powder and the coriander powder and saute for a minute. 
6. Now add in the chopped okra. Sprinkle some more salt. 
7. Keep mixing till the stickiness from the okra is gone and you see oil oozing out. Do not walk away, keep stirring continuously, otherwise the okra on the bottom of the pan tends to burn easily.
8. After the okra is dry and cooked through, sprinkle the coconut powder. Mix well and serve hot.
9. It goes excellent with chapati.

Tasty Tips:

1. Okra has a lot of capsules in it. It tends to get slimier when you cut through these capsules. So, be very careful while chopping the okra.
2. Choose the okra that are thin, long and tender.
3. Water contact is what makes okra more slimier. So make sure okra is really dry before you chop. Skipping this step increases the cooking time.
4. Make sure you do not fry the onions too much before adding the okra. Onions fry along with the okra through the cooking process otherwise they tend to darken even before the okra is cooked.
5. If your okra is taking too long to lose the stickiness, add in a few teaspoons of buttermilk. 
6. A wide non-stick pan is definitely helpful.