And finally, an idea for your okra. It comes from Mark Bittman, also of the New York Times, and he says: “If you like okra, which is in season now, you’ll probably like this recipe for okra stew, because, well, it’s okra. If you hate okra, you’ll also probably like this recipe for okra stew, because the okra practically disappears.”
It seems that many people in the Riverview CSA are into canning and pickling. I found this recipe idea from the Food Network’s “Big Daddy’s House” an intriguing way to use jalapenos and okra in one fell swoop. The original directions were a little confusing, so I’ve modified them here. The idea seemed worth sharing, especially if you’re a household that uses pickled jalapenos.The quantities of jalapenos and okra called for here may not match what you got in your box, but I think you could add in some of the green peppers as well to make a total of 1 1/2 pounds of vegetables (in addition to the carrots and onion).
A note about your okra. There’s been lots of conversation about okra recently, especially with the bounty Suzanne was offering last weekend. Fried okra is great, but don’t think of it as a side dish alone. I loved these suggestions from the July issue of Southern Living.
I’m delighted each week with the little bag of okra. I’m the only one in my house who likes okra, and I am glad to have it all to myself. But there was one year I grew a row in my garden, and each week harvested six pounds of okra. For weeks and weeks … six pounds of okra, every week. At that time there were three of us at home who liked okra, but even so, after a week or two, nobody really wanted okra with every meal and we needed an alternative. And so we made okra pickles. JCT Kitchen’s Ford Fry will be demoing okra pickles with Bloody Marys this weekend at the Peachtree Road Farmers Market. Yum.
Here’s a recipe that Steven Satterfield of Miller Union gave out earlier. Your little bag of okra is probably just enough for this recipe. You can make these pickles and just keep them in the refrigerator, or for shelf life, carefully boil the jars and lids and then process the pickles in boiling water for 10 minutes before storing in a cool place. Properly processed, they’ll keep for about a year.
If you want your okra cooked, here’s a recipe from Gerry Klaskala of Aria, demonstrated at the Peachtree Road Farmers Market in July. You can skip the mango powder, or find it at an Indian grocery. Leftover spice mix will work on all kinds of other vegetables or meats.