"Gumbo" is the Swahili word for okra, a heat-loving vegetable originating in Africa. Okra grows in all kinds of hot-weather climates and is more drought-resistant than many other vegetables. Botanical cousin to the hibiscus and Rose of Sharon, okra grows throughout West Africa, the Middle East, and the American South. Repeated picking encourages heavy yields of edible seed-pods.
What to Look For:
Okra Storage and Preparation Tips:
Cooking with Okra:
Like some varieties of peppers and grains, okra traveled from Africa with slaves. Introductions of African vegetables and seasonings are now regarded as a heritage element of southern American cuisine.
Okra can be steamed whole, sliced and boiled, battered and fried, or incorporated into stews and soups. Classic gumbos include onion, peppers, tomato, shellfish, poultry or meat, and okra, accompanied by rice. Served as a side-dish okra can be enhanced with a light dressing of hot pepper sauce. Some cooks advise soaking cut okra briefly in vinegar or salt, to draw excess juice, before cooking. Okra juice, high in pectin, is valued as a thickener for stews and soups. Northerners who have encountered okra only in commercially produced soups have missed a truly unusual complex of flavors and textures—a rough-textured pod enclosing a mucilaginous juice and seeds that pop when chewed.
Okra Nutrition Highlights:
Okra is a very good source of fiber; its soluble fiber contributes to lowering cholesterol, and its insoluble half contributes to colon health. Okra contains good levels of vitamin A, calcium, vitamin B6 and folate, contributing to healthy bone and cell development.