Okra Fries | Baked, vegan, crispy ladies finger |

Crispy crunchy slightly spicy okra fries for evening snacks.Best accompaniment with Indian strong tea, or a better idea would be to snack with your ccocktail.

Ideal rainy day snack to have watching the rain.

I have added the--- video recipe --------so you get to see what I do. Don't forget to see the last part for some ASMR 🙂

Okra is a very versatile veggie so could adopt any kind of flavoring like spice rubs, seasonings like cajun, creole or marinating mixes like shrimp fry mix (which has flour/chick pea flour in it) can be used to increase flavor.Plain okra with salt pepper and few drops of oil would also come out equally good.

Fresh okra/ ladies finger - 2 handfuls

Dry spice mix :

Chili powder - 1 tsp (Use milder one paprika if your tolerance level is low)

Turmeric powder - 1/3 to 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder - 1 heaped tsp

Cumin powder - 3/4 th tsp or more

Salt to taste

Vinegar - 1 tbsp (I use rice wine vinegar)

Olive oil- 2-3 tsp to moisten the spice powders

1. Wash the okra well and pat dry them with a paper towel . Make sure the okra is really dry else it will be slimy.
2. Cut off the head of each okra and slice into two.
3. In a bowl mix the dry spice powders with vinegar and olive oil stir it well until combined. Carefully apply this on the okra without tossing it too much.
4. Keep the bowl covered for 20 minutes.
5. Preheat oven to 400 ?. Grease a baking tray with olive oil.
6. Spread okra in a single layer on a baking sheet and place it in the middle rack. Start checking the okra after 20 minutes. We are looking for crispy , curled firm okra sticks. If it is still bending or slightly soft it is not done.
7. Remove from the baking tray as soon as the okra is done.
8. Serve immediately with a tart mayo dip.

Caution: Keep an eye else the spices will burn and taste bitter if over done.

Tips to get crispy Okra fries :

• Moisture can make okra slimy and take longer to crisp up.
• Do not wash okra for a long time. Wash fast, drain well, pat dry and leave on counter on a paper towel to dry thoroughly.
• Dust okra with a light flour coating or plain bread crumb coating to get it crispy if u think it has turned soggy with vinegar and oil.
• Do not over crowd the tray while baking.
• Mature okra can be fibrous, make sure to use tender ones
• Leaner okra will turn crispy fast
• Okra works well with other spice rubs, seasonings like cajun, creole or marinating mixes like shrimp fry mix (which has flour/chick pea flour in it) can be used to increase flavor.
• Buy fresh looking okra without blemishes or black lines for best results

Hope you like this recipe.

Meena