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The Incredible Edible Okra

If you aren’t from the South you may not have ever had okra, but this southern staple can hold surprises even for those of us who have loved it all our lives.

okra_plant

While finishing up a writing project for one of my clients this morning I happened upon a snippet of information that proves once and for all that even an old gardener can learn something new every day.  The pods of the okra plant are not the only edible part!  Apparently I am really late to this particular garden party, but the leaves of the plant are also edible both cooked and raw.  In fact, according to Wikipedia, the cooked leaves are a great, natural way to thicken soups and stews.

Okra pods can be fried (a personal favorite), stewed with tomatoes and even pickled.  If you have ever been to Louisiana and had the mouthful of heaven they call gumbo then you need to know it can’t happen without the delicious okra.  Now I am happy to say that the leaves of this year’s Clemson Spineless crop are going to find their way to our dinner plates as well.  Just one more way to feed ourselves from the garden.

Okra-Bloom-Closeup

Okra flowers are not only beautiful, but they can also be cooked to yield a delicious, nutty asparagus-like flavor that you won’t believe!

If you have never tried to grow okra, it is an easy and low maintenance vegetable plant that will add wonderful variety, height and color to your vegetable garden.  If you have some extra space in your garden you can direct sow okra now and still have time to get a great yield before the first frost of Fall/Winter.

When it comes to saving seeds, it doesn’t get any easier than the trusty okra, either.  Leave two or three pods to mature on the plant.  When they dry out fully, a simple twist of the pod will yield dozens of okra seeds to save for next year or you might even try roasting and grinding them to make a coffee substitute.

Thanks to my buddy Tee Riddle @ veggiegardener.com for the use of the okra photos in this post.

{ 6 comments… add one }
  • Patricia Messer August 22, 2015, 3:23 am

    I’m just growing okra for the first time.The flowers alone are a reason to grow it. They are so beautiful and now I see edible. Bonus! Thank you for this great article. I too am an older gardener that has learned a new trick.

  • DLynne March 18, 2016, 9:07 pm

    Now, I’m also wondering, if the fresh leaves act as a thickener, what if they were dried and crumbled or ground up, could they still be used as a low carb thickener, to replace flour or corn starch? Hmmm? I definitely plan to try the fresh leaves now. I’ve eaten the pods raw and enjoy grazing in my garden, but I’ve never tried the okra leaves raw or otherwise. Interesting article, thanks.

    • Michael Nolan March 18, 2016, 9:08 pm

      You have me curious, too. I am going to try it this summer.

  • Ron Cook June 15, 2016, 3:05 pm

    I have used the old okra variety; Clemson Spineless, to develop a new strain of high producing, heavily branching, okra called, “Heavy Hitter.” You can read about it and also see photos on the green country seed savers website, under “Our Crops” then Heavy Hitter Okra. Glen Hamner of Panama is currently developing a cross breed variety of Heavy Hitter, using a local feral okra found growing wild in the tropics. This cross is currently going by the name of, “CH-F1.” The f1 generation of this cross is doing some amazing things, from branching at every leaf node, to very early pod production. Glen’s thread called, “My Latest Garden Project in Panama” can be found on the green country seed savers website under “General Board.” There is a lot of information there for those of you wanting to learn more about gardening, or plant breeding, or who just enjoy plain old conversations about gardening, or country life.

  • Mercedes Lewis January 2, 2018, 3:44 pm

    I am snooping around to see if anyone has experimented with ground dried okra seeds in bread. This magical plant is so dang nutritious, I would love to use all the parts all the time!!

  • Chris Smith April 11, 2018, 10:50 am

    There is an African culinary history of using the leaves in soups and stews. The ground seeds have been used as a fortification to wheat bread, again mainly in Africa. I use the ground seed flour in pancakes, pie crusts etc. It is delicious.

    I’m actually researching a writing a book called In Defense of Okra that explores all the varied and under appreciated uses of okra. It’ll be published by Chelsea Green in April 2019.

    Cheers,

    Chris

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