Does Okra Freeze Well : Okra

How to Freeze Okra in 5 Easy Steps

Okra might only be in season for a few months, but freezing a fresh crop will make it last all year.Freezing is the easiest way to store fresh okra for year-long enjoyment (learn how to can it here).Following these five easy steps will ensure your okra stays at peak freshness all year long.Soak the whole okra pods in a mixture of equal parts water and vinegar.This will help to dissolve any pesticide and fertilizer residue (and get rid of bugs... yikes).To do this, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the okra on top in a single layer.Place in the freezer until okra is completely solid, about four hours to overnight.When you're ready to use, simply cook the okra straight from the bag, no thawing required. .

Can You Freeze Okra? [3 Must-Read Tips]

However, it can be easy to end up with too much, especially if you have managed to buy some in the supermarket so what do you do with the excess?If freezing okra raw, then it should be blanched beforehand to lock in the flavour and texture.As with most vegetables, there is some prep work involved for you to freeze okra successfully.To chop, you can slice them into bite-sized pieces or dice them into any shape you prefer.Lay the okra onto the baking sheet in a single layer.Label the bag with the date and contents and seal it tightly.After this time, take the bag out of the freezer and give it a little shake to separate the okra as it freezes.Then you can put it back into the freezer and forget about it until you need some okra in your meal.It cooks the okra just enough to maintain its lovely colour and flavour but doesn’t overcook it.It means you can cook them right from frozen, and this saves you a lot of time.One of the best things about freezing your okra using the method outlined above is that you don’t need to thaw it out before using it.Once you have frozen, thawed and heated your okra, we would not recommend that you refreeze it.Doing so could end up with spoiled okra that doesn’t taste great. .

How To Freeze Fresh Okra

It only requires 4 simple steps, and you will have your freezer full for those winter months ahead.It’s that time of year again when the garden is growing, and you are harvesting baskets of fresh produce, including okra.Here on the farm, we tend to have plenty of okra during the months of June through September.Follow this simple recipe, and you will have as much okra as you can possibly fit into your freezer for those winter months.Freeze–Freeze the okra by placing it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.This will allow the okra to freeze in individual pieces- making it easier to use what is needed.Be sure to check out my recipe for Crispy Southern Fried Okra for a delicious side dish or appetizer.If you are planning on frying the okra, remove the amount you will need from the freezer.Plus, it freezes it in individual pieces allowing you to use only the amount that is needed for the recipe. .

How To Freeze Okra

Okra is a popular vegetable present in most Nigerian kitchen and it is added to various types of dishes.Here in the UK, you pay almost £3 ($4.50) for 300g frozen okra from your local Asian store.You are guaranteed fresh okra at all times, you can label it correctly to be sure of how long it has been in your freezer.Okra also known as lady’s finger is a type of vegetable green seed pod, it belongs to the Abelmoschus esculentus plant family.It is long and slender in shape and contains little round white seed when sliced into.Okra originated from Ethiopia, and popularly grown in hot and humid region like Nigeria, Ghana and most parts of west Africa.Okra is cooked differently depending on the country or region of the world you are in.While some like it chunky in their soups, I prefer it chopped into smaller bits before using in my dishes.If you leave it out for a long time on the countertop before use, it can change colour to brown due to oxidization.If you want to blanch this vegetable, all you have to do is submerge the okra with boiling water and soak between 2 to 4 minutes.Transfer the blanched okra to cold water to stop it from cooking further.if you have enough freezer space, you can place the chopped okra on a lined baking tray and flash freeze before storing.The okra can loose taste or texture or colour if it gets freezer burnt.If you do try this basic cooking technique, don’t forget to tag @myactivekitchen on Instagram, Facebook or simply send me an email.Okra is a popular vegetable present in most Nigerian kitchen and it is added to various types of dishes.Prep Time 10 mins Cook Time 0 mins Total Time 10 mins Author: Ajoke Equipment Sharp knife Ingredients Okra Instructions Wash and stem the okra: you can wash the okra with half part of water and vinegar, I just rinsed under warm water.Blanch the okra or not: As mentioned earlier, this is a personal preference.If you want to blanch this vegetable, all you have to do is submerge the okra with boiling water and soak between 2 to 4 minutes.transfer the blanched okra to cold water to stop it from cooking further.The okra can loose taste or texture or colour if it gets freezer burnt. .

Tomatoes and okra

As we continue our summer series on eating what's fresh and available in the local market, it's time to turn our attentions to one of the more abundant and tasty vegetables -- okra.For newer visitors to our shores, okra is a late summer dinnertime staple that is served fried, stewed or boiled; some brave souls even eat it raw in salads.It is also a prime ingredient in the signature dish of lower Alabama -- gumbo.Okra helps both to flavor and thicken the viscous broth that is served over rice.That's why you ought not to look too shocked when your friendly gardening neighbor shows up at your door with three or four Wal-Mart bags full of the stuff.Okra is fully mature when the pods grow past about 3 inches, but unlike tomatoes, it doesn't improve with size.Place the okra in the sink and wash it very carefully, taking extra caution to remove any leaves or stink bugs.Cut okra into roughly ½-inch slices (don't go measuring, just estimate) and lay single file onto a cookie sheet or a tray.Place the cookie sheet into your freezer overnight or until the okra is frozen solid.Heat oil in a large Dutch oven (not cast iron); add okra, onions, tomatoes and garlic.Adjust seasonings and serve immediately or freeze in plastic bags.The pieces of okra have a heavy, thick batter crust that I can't for the life of me duplicate at home.It's pretty simple, just mix the dampened pieces of okra with some cornmeal and fry it in a small amount of oil until tender.Season okra with salt and pepper and dredge in cornmeal or flour.Fill pint canning jars firmly with whole okra, leaving ½-inch headspace.Combine salt, hot peppers, dill seed, water and vinegar in large saucepan and bring to a boil.Pour hot pickling solution over okra, leaving ½-inch headspace.Let's just say with football season less than a month away you may find yourself in a situation where you need to garnish a certain spicy tomato-based, pre-game beverage and this is it.Pickled okra also is an excellent addition to any holiday vegetable tray, so make a bunch of it now for later. .

Chicken and Okra Gumbo Recipe

This chicken and okra gumbo recipe is a bit time-consuming but worth every minute.This chicken okra gumbo recipe is one that my husband got when he spent time in Louisiana & it’s so authentic.The recipe is doubled so you can have some tonight for dinner & freeze the other half for another night.After cooking and eating what you can, simply put the leftover gumbo in an airtight container and freeze it for later.Since this is a bit of a more complicated recipe, it’s a good one to cook together with your freezer meal group! .