Okra Strut

 I lived about one third of my life in a town called Irmo, where every fall they celebrate the Okra Strut. This two-day street festival celebrates all things okra, but mostly the fried kind.  We went every year. Between the Friday night block party or the Saturday morning parade it was a big deal in my young life.  They always had an okra-eating contest, but in all those years I never once tasted any okra. A typical kid, green vegetables were not exactly my favorite food.

So I was excited to try okra until I saw it in the grocery store (actually, mom had to point it out to me). I didn't know what it looked like, and when I saw this knobby little thing I was not eager to cook it. First, with the fruits I've been trying lately, I've only bought a couple. With with the okra, I had to buy a whole carton. It was intimidating.

Tonight armed with not one, but two, suggestions on how to cook it, I sliced up the whole carton. Half I sauteed with a little extra virgin olive oil (a suggestion from April) and the other half I baked on cookie sheet (a suggestion from Britt).  Let me tell you, it was really good both ways.  The baked ones tasted really fresh, while the sauteed ones had a different flavor.  It's hard to say which method I found tastier, but I think it would be the baked variety.  I ate almost the whole carton, which is not bad since each pod is only two calories.  

Here's what they look like, in case you don't know either.