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On a recent Today Show, cooking kitten Giada De Laurentiis asked Atlanta chef
Scott Peacock what okra tastes like, and he said, “Like
okra.”
I thought about the question for a minute, and in a
way he’s right. Okra, the only vegetable known to ooze when sliced,
tastes like okra. If blindfolded with a plate of okra before me, I might
say that it tastes like asparagus, but only if it were quickly cooked and
still toothy in an al dente sort of way. When it cozies up with stewy partners, such as
tomatoes, garlic or rice, and surrenders its slime, okra starts to taste a
bit like eggplant, one might argue. Regardless of where you stand on the
fuzzy-green-seeded-slimy-podded matter, okra is undeniably a unique produce
phenomenon, offering culinary versatility. In his short segment with De
Laurentiis, Peacock showcased okra five different ways, including a more
detailed demo for okra fritters, as he called them. Coincidentally, these
fritters are the very same that I’ve been cooing over in my own
kitchen this month; I stumbled upon the recipe for “okra
pancakes” in The Gift of Southern
Cooking, the indispensable book Peacock wrote
with the late Edna Lewis. Although fried, these okra-onion-studded morsels are
light on the tongue, yielding a thin, crisp skin and a pillowy interior,
thanks to a relatively short swim in hot oil. In anticipation of the need
for extra heat or dipping sauce, I had my favorite hot sauce at the ready,
but there was no need. These babies are perfectly savory all by themselves,
and, as I discovered a week later, make terrific cocktail snacks (make them
just before guests arrive and keep them in a warm oven). “These are like okra hushpuppies, only
better,” said my husband as he grabbed his third or fourth fritter. Actually, no comparison is necessary. There’s
nothing quite like these okra fritters — or okra, for that matter
— and that is just OK with me.
Culinary questions? Contact Kim O’Donnel at
kim.odonnel@creativeloafing.com.
Okra pancakes
From The Gift of Southern
Cooking, by Edna Lewis and Scott Peacock
1/2 cup stone-ground cornmeal 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon baking powder One egg, lightly beaten 1/2 cup water 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped 2 cups okra, thinly sliced (about 1/4 inch) Oil for frying
In a mixing bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, 1 teaspoon
of the salt, and baking powder, and stir well to blend. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg and water, then
stir into the dry ingredients, mixing only until moistened (lumps OK). Sprinkle remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and black pepper
over onion and sliced okra, and toss lightly. Fold seasoned vegetables into
the batter. Pour 1 inch of oil into a heavy skillet and heat to
340 degrees. Spoon okra batter by heaping tablespoons into hot oil; do not
overcrowd pan. (Note: In a 9-inch cast-iron skillet, I was able to fit four
at a time.) Fry until golden brown on one side and, with a slotted
spoon or tongs, carefully turn and continue frying until second side is
browned, about three minutes. Remove from oil and drain well on paper
towels. Keep in a warm oven until ready to serve. Makes about 16 2-inch
pancakes.
This article appears in Aug 30 – Sep 5, 2007.
