Southern Fried Okra

Vickie’s Southern Fried Okra
One of Gary’s favorite southern foods is fried okra. He says it’s like eating popcorn and you just can’t get enough of it.

I make it for him about three or four times a year. For his birthday, our anniversary and on holidays.

Preparation time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 to 2 cups of fresh or frozen okra (thawed)
• ½ cup Flour
• ½ cup Corn Meal
• 1 tspn salt
• 1 tspn pepper
• ½ stick of butter or margarine

Directions:

• Combine flour, corn meal, salt and pepper in a gallon size zip lock bag. Close and shake to mix ingredients.
• Prepare the okra:
  • If you’re using fresh okra, wash it and cut into ½ inch slices.
    – Don’t dry it, allow it to stay wet.
  • If you’re using frozen okra, drain any excess water.
• Place the wet okra into the zip lock bag. Close and shake well to fully coat the vegetables with the flour mix.
• Place the bag in the fridge for about 15 minutes.
  – After the 15 minute wait, remove the bag and shake the mixture again.
  – Repeat this step for about 1 hour, replacing the closed bag back into the fridge each time.
• When ready, melt the butter in a medium-sized skillet on medium heat.
• Melt the butter until it’s bubbling.
  – Don’t burn the butter!
• Retrieve the zip lock bag from the fridge. Using your hand, lift the okra out of the flour, gently shaking your hand inside the bag to remove excess flour.
• Place the okra in the melted butter.  Gently turn the okra pieces to ensure they’re coated with butter.
• Cook until covering is golden brown, or to the desired crispness.
• Remove okra from the skillet with a large serving fork to help drain the excess butter and serve.

Alternatives:

• You can use any desired amount of salt/pepper. What’s provided here is just a guideline.
• Also consider adding a small ½ tblspn of onion powder to add an additional flavor to the mix.

Serving Instructions:

• Serve hot.

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