Pan-Fried Okra
- Total Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 4cups okra (about 1⅓ pounds)
- 4½teaspoons salt (any type), plus more to taste
- 1½cups/340 grams fine or medium yellow cornmeal, plus more if needed
- 2cups vegetable oil, plus more as needed
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
687 calories; 38 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 27 grams monounsaturated fat; 7 grams polyunsaturated fat; 79 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 9 grams protein; 634 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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- Step 1
Wash the okra, and place aside, leaving the okra slightly wet. Cut the okra crosswise into ½-inch pieces and place in a large bowl. Season the okra with the salt, adding more to taste.
- Step 2
Pour the cornmeal over the okra. Using both hands, firmly grip the bowl, and shake it until all the okra pieces are coated. If too dry, add a little water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and, if needed, more cornmeal can be added. Lightly press the okra with your hands, making sure that the cornmeal sticks to the okra. Toss the okra again. All the pieces should be coated evenly, with a light layer of cornmeal — but the okra shouldn't be obscured.
- Step 3
In a large cast-iron skillet, heat the oil over medium-high. You can determine if the oil is ready by dropping a pinch of cornmeal into it; the oil should sizzle, but not smoke. (If it’s not hot enough, the okra will soak up the oil.)
- Step 4
Once the oil is ready, working in two batches to avoid crowding, drop half the okra into the hot oil and cook it, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, until golden and crisp. Using a slotted spoon or spider, remove the okra to a plate covered with a paper towel to drain excess oil. Repeat with remaining okra, and serve immediately.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Susan Ives
Add cornmeal to a paper bag. Add okra. Shake till coated. Season.
Mike
Finally! Okra fried the right way! My grandmothers didn't even add salt. I always make two batches so I can eat the entire first batch myself while I make the second batch for everyone else. Tip: You can almost always find fresh okra at Asian markets.
Schlattastic
If possible, pick out your own okra from a farmers market. Look for smaller, bright green pods that are a touch soft for best results. Skip hard or overgrown pods. This recipe is similar to how my mom from Oklahoma made it fresh from our garden as I was growing up in rural Indiana, except she used less oil for a pan fry. I’m a fan of adding a good amount of fresh cracked black pepper to your cornmeal, and letting it brown a bit more. If you haven’t tried fried okra this way before, go for it!
Maxine
Yes, the okra isn't slimy when it is cooked this way. Like a few others, I use bacon grease. With this much oil in the recipe, it is more like deep frying. My way of cooking it is more like frying potatoes in a skillet---not that I don't like it deep fried, but there is a difference in the outcome. Honestly it's the only way I eat okra because, like you, I am put off by the slimy texture.
Jerry
Okra is like eggplant: it soaks oil. I use much less and tend the skillet. The final product may not be as crisp but the taste of the okra isn't hidden.
Sue Cossey
Vegetable oil? No way! Bacon grease. And shake the cut okra in a paper bag with equal parts flour and corn meal seasoned with salt and pepper. Oh be still my heart.
Hamlin O'Kelley
The way it's supposed to be!
Amy Culbertson
The definitive fried okra is my mother's, and the most important thing is that the okra be sliced nickel-thin. A half-inch is far too thick. The slices then should be spread out on wax paper, salted and left to sit for 10 minutes or so to draw out the okra's moisture so that the cornmeal will easily adhere. This recipe does get the coating right: Just cornmeal; nothing more.
Mrsjkoster
This is how the women in my extended Arkansas family always made fried okra. Now that I live in Minnesota, I get my fresh okra from an Indian market. I think food memories are some of the most uniting things on the planet.
TJ
The key with okra is that if you don't want the sliminess as a thickener, don't mix the cut pieces with liquids that aren't oil or acidic. So fried like this works, as do preparations with vinegar or tomatoes.
Julie
This is more or less my okra recipe, learned decades ago from my then-boyfriend’s mom. I grew up in a non-okra-eating culture but have thoroughly adopted the vegetable as my own cuisine! I use a little less oil (I like the okra a little charred) and a little more spice in the cornmeal.
Eva
I grew up eating fried okra since my mother was from Mississippi. It's difficult to find fresh okra in New Mexico. Would it be appropriate to use frozen? Any tips?
Jane
You can spread the okra evenly on a baking sheet and bake in a hot oven until the okra’s crisp.
Gwen
I mix the cuts some thin and some slightly thicker as I want the mix of extra crispy and slightly soft. I also pan fry with much less oil. I am 70 and it is absolutely the best way to eat okra.
Martha
I add a little creole seasoning to cornmeal and toss okra in cornmeal mixture in a bag. I brown okra on cooktop in an iron skillet using canola oil. I then place skillet in 450 degree oven to crisp and brown okra, turning about every 5 minutes. Delicious! MFT Hattiesburg, MS
lisa
This is the way my Grandmother in Austin cooked okra. Only she turned it into a warm salad with chopped fried bacon, diced tomato, and red onion.
TYS>ATL>TPA>ATL>LAX>ATL
Yes! This tastes like home - and it's all about the okra. 'Bout made me cry it's so good.
Gurukaram
This is the best fried okra! This time I used 1.5 tsp salt and next time I will probably take it down to 3/4 tsp. I only had corn flour so I used about 3/4 cup of that. Fried it in 1/4 - 1/2 inch avocado oil in 2 pans and it was perfect and everything was ready at the same time. Make sure the oil is hot enough to start and keep the heat high enough to bring it back up quickly after adding the okra.
pmw80
This was really good. But I was especially shocked at how much my children loved it.
pmw80
I also just shook the okra and cornmeal in a bag.
Gurukaram
Delicious fried okra. The second time that I made this recipe I cut the salt to 1 TBS ( 3 tsp) and next I will try cutting it further. Salting the okra before adding the cornmeal draws out moisture for the corneal to stick to and distributed the seasoning well. This time I cooked it in two pans with about 1/2 inch avocado oil in each. Everything was ready at the same time and I didn’t have to try to cook the second batch in a pan with a layer of ever darkening cornmeal at the bottom
Donna
This recipe calls for 1 tsp salt per cup of okra. Can that possibly be right?!?
Janet
I dip it in an egg wash first, then in a mix of corneal and flour and fry in just a quarter inch of oil in a small skillet. The way I was taught in Texas was to add pieces of turnip (don't remember why!) Not having turnip on hand, I've been using a few chunks of potato.
Shellie
I add a little diced onion to give it a little mor flavor.
heather
Every year I grow okra just to make this for myself. It is so addictive and tasty!
lisa
i discovered fried Okra from my mothers Oklahoma family when i was a kid. it’s better than french fries still! and that was 50 years ago. fresh okra is best, frozen and thawed is ok if you’re having a craving- i like it a quarter or half inch sliced patted almost dry and tossed with 3/4 amount of cornmeal and 1/4 amount flour and salt and pepper. let it rest and fry in a skillet as they say in the recipe oh a 1/4 inch of oil is fine til brown and drain on paper towels. YUM
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