Okra Curry

This Okra Curry is delicious, slightly tangy, moderately spicy and full-flavored. It is made in South Indian style with various ground & whole spices, onions, tomatoes and curry leaves. I love adding sweet potatoes to make this a filling meal but you may omit or use hard boiled eggs to boost the protein content. This Indian Okra is 100% plant-based, gluten-free, can be made ahead and frozen.

About Okra Curry

Okra is a staple in the Indian cuisine and goes by the name bhindi. They are stir fried, curried, stewed and deep fried. This Okra Curry is simple but is cooked with a special spice blend and adapts a special cooking method. The most common method is to pan-fry this veggie in oil until it loses its slime and gooey texture.

But this recipe uses a much different cooking method where okra is cooked in a spicy and tangy tamarind liquid to cook down the slime. This method also thickens the curry naturally. At the end, you get juicy, tangy, spicy and full-flavored okra that’s slime-free. I find this method of cooking okra much healthier rather than pan-frying the okra separately for too long.

This recipe yields the best results with sambar powder, a spice blend used to make lentil stew/sambar. However you can use other spice blends like meat masala, curry powder, pav bhaji masala, bisi bele bath powder and vangi bath powder. Over the years I have made this with so many different spice blends and surprisingly none of them failed but they imparted different flavors. So choose what you like.

For the best curried flavor, my preferred choice is Sambar powder, bisi bele bath powder and my homemade Curry powder. The inclusion of lentils in these spice blends not only imparts a nutty flavor but also thicken the curry without being runny. If you have none of the above, use garam masala and other basic spices as mentioned below.

Photo Guide

How to make Okra Curry (Stepwise photos)

1. Gather the following ingredients:

• 250 grams (about 9 ounce) okra (rinse, drain, chop to 1 inch, don’t need to wipe dry)
• 1 sprig fresh curry leaves (omit if you don’t have)
• 1 cup (120 grams) fine chopped onion (1 medium – red or yellow onion)
• ¾ cup (50 grams) chopped tomatoes (1 medium, deseed if preferred)
• 4 to 5 (10 grams) large garlic cloves sliced (don’t chop too small)
• 1 medium sweet potato ((150 grams, optional) chop to ½ inch thick slices & immerse in a bowl of water
• ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds (omit if you don’t like)
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds (may omit)
• 2½ tablespoon sambar powder / mild or madras curry powder
• ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder (adjust to heat preference)
• 1 to 2 tablespoon Tamarind paste or sour tamarind chutney (or 2 tbsp tamarind soaked in ⅓ cup hot water)
• 1 tablespoon jaggery or any sweetener (optional, omit if using tamarind chutney)
• optional – ¼ to ⅓ cup thick coconut milk ( or grind ¼ cup grated coconut with ¼ cup water or use coconut chutney, adjust to taste)

2. On a medium flame, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and cumin seeds.

3. When the seeds begin to pop, add the curry leaves, onions and garlic. Saute for 3 mins.

4. Add the okra and saute for another 5 mins.

5. Stir in the red chili powder, sambar powder/ curry powder and salt.

(If you want you may sub sambar powder with 1 tablespoon coriander powder, ½ teaspoon cumin powder, ½ to ¾ teaspoon garam masala, ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder and ½ teaspoon red chili powder.)

6. Add the tomatoes, tamarind and ½ cup water. (If using soaked tamarind, squeeze well & strain using a strainer/filter)

7. The consistency should be like seen in the image.

8. Mix well and cook covered for 5 mins. The curry gets thicker due to the spices, so keep an eye. This step is crucial to cook down the gooey texture in okra.

9. Pour 1 more cup water and cook covered till okra and sweet potatoes are fork tender. Add more water if required while they cook.

10. Mine takes about 15 to 20 mins. It may depending on the kind of cookware, intensity of the flame and the okra. Mature okra take longer to cook.

11. Stir in jaggery and coconut milk if using. Mix well and taste test to adjust salt and tamarind to your preference. It should be ideally tangy, spicy and lightly sweet. Bring to a boil and turn off the heat.

Garnish Okra Curry with coriander leaves if you want and serve with brown rice, millets or eat it on its own like a meal. Flatbreads like chapati, ragi roti, roti are also some options.

Expert Tips

• It is essential to keep the sweet potatoes slices thinner else they will take longer to sook.
• It is alright to use slightly mature okra. They will cook down well unless they are too woody.
• Store bought spice blend can be too hot so adjust the quantity as required or omit the additional red chili powder. I use my homemade sambar powder or curry powder which is less hot.
• Store bought tamarind paste or chutney varies in tartness. So start with lower amount and add more to your preference. I use 2 tbsps organic tamarind, soaked in hot water
• Too much coconut will dilute the flavors. If you prefer stronger flavors, omit the coconut completely.

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