A simple Vegan Okra Stir fry / Okra Curry made with garden fresh Okra. This side dish will definitely make you an Okra lover (if you are not one already)!
Growing up and to this day, Vendakkai / Okra is one of my favorite vegetables. My favorite has now transformed into a family favorite as my boys love okra more than any other vegetable.
A lot of people shy away from this vegetable because of its slimy texture, but if we cook it right we can get rid of that texture and achieve a wonderful recipe. This Vendakkai Curry is a simple recipe that we all love.
This okra stir fry recipe is without onions and it goes well with rice and sambhar or rasam. I love this curry with my curd rice too. I make another version of the okra curry with onions and tomatoes as a side to roti/chapati.
And this Stewed Okra and Tomatoes is yet another favorite way to serve okra. This vegan stew tastes delicious over some warm rice.
What is Okra
Okra also known as Vendakkai in Tamil, Bhendi in Hindi, and ladies finger as the English name in India is a topical vegetable that grows well in summer.
Ever since we moved to Oklahoma, we have been having an Okra bonanza. They just love the heat here and it yields much more than we have ever grown anywhere else.
Growing our own Okra
We plant around 70 to 80 okra plants every season. It is such a pleasure to be walking into our backyard and picking young tender okras.
We grow enough okra to last us the whole year. We use it in abundance in summer and any extra is promptly frozen to be used in winter months. Okras are very picky vegetables and have to be harvested almost every day.
My husband does a great job keeping up with it. If I just have a handful of okra picked on a certain day, then vendakkai sambhar / Okra sambhar is what it is used in.
One of our other favorites in the Okra Pachadi / Raita which has fried okra pieces in yogurt.
If you are looking to make something different with okra, then I would highly suggest making this Bhendir Sorsori / Okra in the mustard paste. It is a recipe from the Assam region and quite different from anything we make.
Ingredients to make Okra Curry
- Okra – 1 lb or about ½ kg
- Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
- Turmeric powder – 1tsp
- Red chili powder – 1 ½ tsp
- Dhania Jeera Powder / Coriander - cumin powder (optional) – 1 tsp
- Asafetida – ¼th tsp
- Salt – to taste
- Oil – 3 tbsp
- Curry leaves – few
Procedure to make Vendakkai Curry
- Wash the okra and drain them in a colander. It is important to wash the okras before we chop them. If we chop them first and then chop them, the sliminess of the vegetable will increase.
- Now chop it into small circles and keep it aside.
- In a nonstick pan, heat the oil and once the oil heats up, add all the ingredients except the okra and salt. Let the seasoning fry for about a minute.
- Now add the okra and salt and mix it well.
- Cover the pan with an airtight lid and let it cook on medium-high heat for about 3 to 4 mins. Do open the lid once in between and give it a stir. At
no point add any water to the vegetable. The okras would cook in the steam produced by covering the pan. Adding water will increase the
sliminess.
- Once the okras are cooked, leave the pan open and let it fry well. In about 5 - 7 more minutes the okra would have fried well and your curry is now ready. Do stir the curry once or twice in between cooking.
- Serve the vendakkai curry with rice and sambhar or rasam or in my style with curd rice.
How to save/freeze the okra
After leaving India, I became obsessed with this vegetable because of its scarcity of it. We did not get very good okras in the stores here.
So when I do find fresh okras peeking at me in the Indian stores or to extend our summer produce, I freeze the vegetable. Clean the okra and then let it dry completely. Then chop them into the desired size and place in a freezer bag and freeze them.
Do not defrost the frozen okras. To use them, directly put them in a hot pan to cook. Defrosting would make the vegetable very slimy.
If you made this recipe and liked it, give a star rating on the recipe card or let me know in the comments below. You could also share it with me on Instagram using #MyCookingJourney and tagging me @sandhya.ramakrishnan. You could follow me and my recipes on Facebook |Instagram | Pinterest | twitter
Vendakkai Curry / Okra Fry
Equipment
- saute pan
- Cutting board
- Knife
Ingredients
- 1 lb Okra
- 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon Red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon Dhania Jeera Powder / Coriander - cumin powder
- ¼ teaspoon Asafetida
- to taste Salt
- 2 tablespoon Oil
- few Curry leaves
Instructions
- Wash the okras and drain them in a colander. It is important to wash the okras before we chop them. If we chop them first and then chop, the sliminess of the vegetable will increase.
- Now chop it into small circles and keep aside.
- In a non stick pan, heat the oil and once the oil heats up, add all the ingredients except the okra and salt. Let the seasoning fry for about a minute.
- Now add the okra and salt and mix it well.
- Cover the pan with an airtight lid and let it cook on medium high heat for about 3 to 4 mins. Do open the lid once in between and give it a stir. At
- At no point add any water to the vegetable. The okras would cook in the steam produced by covering the pan. Adding water will increase the sliminess
- Once the okras are cooked, leave the pan open and let it fry well. In about 5 - 7 more minutes the okra would have fried well and your curry is now ready. Do stir the curry once or twice in between cooking.
- Serve it with rice and sambhar or rasam or in my style with curd rice.
Roopali says
Hi Sandhya,
Do you mind sharing some tips to grow okra like what type of soil, fertilizer, seeds to grow also the month to plant them. I’m based in Dallas.
Thank you
Roopali
MJoseph says
Hi Sandhya, does this same recipe work for thawed frozen okra? Thanks
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Absolutely! But don't thaw it. Use frozen okra directly from freezer to the pan after the initial seasoning. Just replace the fresh ones with frozen okra.
Amara says
Okra is our favourite too. It's awesome that you are growing them. Garden to the table...Yumm...
Danielle says
I am already and Okra lover just from looking at these images. Such a yummy and healthy dish - I've got to try it!
Harini Rupanagudi says
Growing okra in your backyard is an invite in itself for me 🙂 How I wish you were my neighbor 🙂 Would love to have this fresh okra fry.
Srividhya Gopalakrishnan says
Growing your own veggie is always great. I usually plant 5 to 6. But I think I should atleast plant 20. Between love the simple curry.
Pavani says
My daughter would eat that whole bowl of okra fry 🙂 I especially buy these for her. Wish I could grow my own okra - love the really fresh ones - so tender and delicious.
Leslie says
Great recipe here! I love the mix of flavors that you used for this! Very appetizing!
Leslie says
I hate to admit, but I still have yet to try Okra. It's not very popular where I'm originally from. But I live in the south now and it's very popular here! This recipe does look very tasty!
Vaishali Sabnani says
Bhindi is our favourite too , and growing it in your own backyard - wow ! You are lucky to enjoy the farm fresh veggies .
Byron Thomas says
This is a quick and easy recipe which is perfect for a weeknight side dish. I love the addition of the mustard seeds and the chili. I did leave out the cumin, because I'm not a fan of it, but it was still very, very delicious!
Srivalli Jetti says
I love bendi fry and your plant looks so lovely Sandhya..
Priya R says
simple and delicious veg 🙂 love this with sambar rice yummm!
My Cooking Journey says
Thanks priya!
Ramya Krishnamurthy says
my fav sis.delicious.
My Cooking Journey says
Thanks Ramya!
Meena B says
love this okra and whats more u r growing ur own okra
reminds me of life in village where we had a house long back and had our own backyard to grow plants
lovely okra dish sandy
My Cooking Journey says
Thanks Meena Aunty! We grow all our vegetables in our backyard. This way I never have shortage of Indian vegetables and the pleasure we get from gardening is immense 🙂
Aruna Manikandan says
Healthy and delicious curry 🙂
My Cooking Journey says
Thanks Aruna !
Amy says
yummy dish...
My Cooking Journey says
Thanks Amy!