Bhindi fry recipe | How to make bhindi fry | Okra stir fry

Bhindi fry recipe – Simple, delicious and healthy stir fried okra/bhindi. Okra also known as ladies finger is a vegetable widely used in Indian cuisine to make various dishes like sambar, curry, chutney, stir fry and stew. This bhindi fry is a simple preparation made by stir frying the veggie and then lightly spiced. It is served with plain rice, roti or chapati.

I make bhindi often at home since my kids’ love it in any form. Most of the times I end up making stir fry to serve with roti, rice, Sambar or Rasam.

Sometimes we also serve it with curd rice. I make bhindi fry each time with different seasonings as my kids’ don’t like repeating the same. The recipe I have shared here is one of the delicious ways to prepare bhindi.

There are not many ways to make bhindi fry. But it can be seasoned or flavored with different ingredients. Using garam masala, fresh coconut or other spice powders are some of them.

I often make Andhra style bendakaya vepudu with coconut and roasted peanuts which is a favorite at home.

This bhindi fry is flavored with roasted & crushed peanuts, coconut & sesame which perks up the nutrition of dish. It turns out very delicious and aromatic.

If you are a weight watcher then you can skip peanuts and use coconut or sesame. You can also skip all of the 3 and just sprinkle some garam masala. Here are some tips that may help you.

Tips

• Rinse and dry bhindi well with a kitchen tissue or cloth before chopping. This prevents them turning slimy while chopping and stir frying.
• If using frozen okra for stir frying, then spread them on kitchen tissues for a while so the excess moisture is reduced or absorbed by the tissues. To some extent this helps in reducing the slime while cooking.
• You can easily skip my spice powder mentioned in the recipe below and use any other spice powders like peanut podi, flax seed podi, idli podi or chutney podi.

Can I air fry or bake?

Yes. You can also bake or air fry chopped bhindi for the first few minutes so they cook faster in the pan. The only advantage is you don’t need to deal with the slime in the pan as most of it will just be dried up in the oven/air fryer.

These methods are good when you are making this bhindi fry in large quantity. Ensure you chop them at least ½ inch otherwise they turn too dry. After air frying or baking, follow the recipe as is and add them to the tempering.

In the air fryer I keep them for 4 mins at 160 C (320 F). Keeping them for too long will make them dry & lifeless. I am sharing what works for me. You may need to adjust the timing as it depends on your air fryer. I drizzle little oil before air frying.

To bake them in oven, toss them in little oil and spread them on a greased foil. Bake at 180 C (350 F) for 5 to 6 mins. Avoid baking them for too long they become too dry.

You may also like to check
Bhindi do pyaza
Easy bhindi masala
Bhindi ki sabzi
Vendakkai poriyal

Step-by-step photos

Preparation for bhindi fry

1. Rinse bhindi under running water. Drain them to a colander and wipe dry with a kitchen cloth or tissue.

2. Chop them to half inch pieces and set aside. For comfort while chopping use kitchen tissue to wipe off the slime from the knife.

How to make bhindi fry

3. Heat oil in a pan and cumin. I have used about 2.5 tbsps here since I have not used a non stick pan. You can reduce it to 1.5 tbsp if you use a non stick pan.

4. When the jeera begins to splutter add chopped bhindi and stir fry on a medium heat.

5. Keep stirring at regular intervals. Over doing it will make the bhindi more slimy so do it as needed. Bhindi will begin to turn slimy after a minute. To reduce the slime I usually sprinkle some lemon juice but I have not done it this time.

Making nut powder for bhindi fry

6. You can skip the peanuts from the recipe and use only coconut or sesame. You can also just use garam masala and skip all of these three.

7. While the bhindi is getting fried, roast the peanuts and garlic on a medium flame until golden.

8. Turn off the heat and add coconut and sesame seeds. I have also used little cumin here. Fry lightly for a minute.

9. Cool them completely and make a coarse powder.

10. When the bhindi is done, you will find that they are no more slimy. At this stage add salt and turmeric. Mix well.

11. Pour 1 teaspoon oil to the center of the pan. Add red chili powder to it. Let the chilli powder fry in oil for about 10 seconds.

12. Then mix it well with the bhindi. Fry for another 3 to 4 mins if desired. I do not prefer to over cook bhindi so I did not fry further.

13. Add the peanut powder.

14. Mix it well with the bhindi. It doesn’t need to be cooked further.

Enjoy bhindi fry with rice or roti.

Recipe