Yes, that is correct. You just never know what you are going to find posted on my blog. That is why I created my blog so I could talk about things I find of interest in hopes it will be of interest to you. And in this case it is about the Fried Okra I cooked last evening.
Okra Rules!
Now, I know Okra is not widely known as a food item in many parts of the world and New Jersey where my friend Chris Kulturides lives. In case you are not familiar with what Okra is you can read about it here.. I’ll just say..It’s Good..enough said.
The reason I called out my friend CK is because since the first of the year I have been part of Chris’ Above the Coals Grillin Seasoning R&D group for his grillin seasoning he markets online. To save you the time of clicking on my Disclaimer Tab I will state it here that I am not getting paid by Chris..or anyone else… to say what I say in this blog..or any other blog on his product. I just like the stuff and since I like it I figured it might be something you might want to try.
The Real Deal
To keep from digressing any further let me bring you to why I am blogging on Okra. One of the little known facts about me is my family has a farming and ranching background. Being a 5th generation Texan this should not come to a huge surprise to those who do know me.
However, my elderly parents moved back to our historical family farm in North East Texas where they now live the simpler life of a farmer. One of the things they farm is Okra. They don’t grow a lot of Okra, just enough to feed several large families each year. So whenever I go to visit my parents they send me home with a large sack of Okra. So, enough said on how I came about getting the Okra I cook and how I grew up eating Okra.
Getting After It!
Last evening, I broke open the bag of Okra I received from my parents and thought it was time to whip up a patch of my Fried Okra. My wife, being from the Northwest had never had Okra until she migrated to Texas about 20 years ago and since then has fell in love with Okra..especially the Fried Okra version.
Changing It Up
So, as I was preparing the Okra I was thinking of things I could do differently to the batter that would give the Okra a different flavor. Well, guess what was there in the spice cabinet starring me in my face? Yes, it was my world famous 8oz shaker of Chris’ Above The Coals Seasoning. The shaker was filled with his most popular selling flavor..and my personal favorite version of his product line..Signature Classic.
Not All About the Beef
Naturally, CK originally created the seasoning as a Meat rub for grillin. But since I don’t eat a lot of meat I volunteered to see what else his Signature Classic seasoning would work on. As of the night before last I have used SC on nearly everything..salads, scramble eggs, Bacon, soups, stews.so forth. Everything but my pancakes and I thought about cutting SC with some brown sugar to try it on them..but I’ll wait on that.
Signature Classic Rocks
Last evening I mixed some of the Signature Classic into the batter mix for my fried Okra. If you want me to cut to chase here to tell you how it came out..well…what do you expect??. It was over the top Awesome.
Habits Are Created
My wife hardly ever raves about anything..especially about food. While she sat with me during the entire Texas Ranger game last night stopping between cheering the players on she would say things like ..that play was almost as good as the Okra we had tonight...or..I’m going to go get more of the leftover okra to eat while I watch the game.. Believe me..unheard of stuff was coming out of her mouth. But..rightfully so. The Okra was Great.
The Signature Classic seasoning hit the target which was to produce a different flavor to the fried Okra. So, Now I suspect you want to know the recipe so you can try it. OK..guess I have said enough of how good it was ..here is how I made it so good.. Hope you Get After It and make up a mess of fried Okra right away.
Signature Classic Fried Okra Seasoning
Two Pounds of cut Okra (cut into 1/2 inch lengths as shown in the photo)
Soak the cut okra in a bowl of warm water and add three tablespoons of white vinegar to the water. Let stand for a minimum of 20 minutes (or two innings of baseball)
Place two cups of Olive Oil in a cast iron frying pan..or Wok or Deep Frier if you have one..I have used them all.
The secret here is to use a light Olive Oil and not a fatty vegetable oil..something light is the best. The Okra can get real greasy tasting if you a heavy fatty oil.
Once you have finished the mixing process below, Turn on the heat to Hot . Make sure the oil is real hot before cooking the Okra.
Then, for the mix place in a gallon zip lock bag the following (traditionally a bowl is used to mix all this stuff, but I like to cut to the chase):
- 3 cups of stoned grown yellow corn meal
- 1 cup of all purposed flour (feel free to use gluten free, I do)
- 1/4 Cup of Above the Coals Grillin Seasoning Signature Classic (If you like spicy..painfully spicy..try the Caroline Heat Wave flavor)
- 2 tablespoons of course ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon of sea salt (regular salt is OK)
Pretty simple, huh? Shake the bag to mix the ingredients
Now, drain the water off the Okra with a strainer and place the cut Okra in the zip lock bag with the mix…use you hand to keep from putting extra water into the bag.
Shake up the bag.
I let the mix stand for another inning of the ball game while the oil heated up. This lets the mix soak into the Okra. Once the oil nears being ready, sift off the Okra from the mix in the bag. I do this with my hands, but if you want to not be as messy as I get you can use a sifting spoon to but the Okra in a dry bowl.
Once the oil is hot and you sifted the Okra, slowly pour the Okra in the hot oil..be careful to not let the oil splash out..yes..it is hot.
Let the Okra fry for about ten minutes..or until they are golden or dark brown.
Once they get there, turn off the burner and start sifting the Okra out with a draining spoon or strainer. Place the cooked okra in a bowl lined with paper towels to soak up the excess oil.
You can then add more salt or even sprinkle on more Signature Classic if you like. They are ready to eat..so Get After It.
Love to hear if you try this and hope you stop by to visit with Chris on Google+..or take a look at the Above the Coals site and order one of the Sample packages….believe, you can put this stuff on everything.
Let me know how I can help.
