Yahoo! Canada Answers Blog

If you’re a mom like me, you constantly worry about developing healthy eating habits for your kids. How do you get the little munchkins to eat their vegetables? (And I am not including french fries in this challenge.) Drop us a comment and share your tips, but first check out my story about okra and a new recipe I created. (My 9-month-old baby totally loves this!)

As a kid, much to the joy of my parents, I loved okra, the vegetable that’s high in fiber, calcium, and iron: fuzzy on the outside and mucilaginous on the inside!

My introduction to okra was when I visited the exotic city of Ahvaz, Iran, in a stew called “koresh bamieh.” I next saw it in a less-exotic location — North Carolina — where I dined in a cafeteria called K+W, which served Southern-style fried okra. I remember the manager telling me “you gotta try those, honey; everyone around here loves them things. You ain’t a true Southerner if you don’t love Okra.” It actually took me a year or two to realize that okra and bamieh were the same vegetable!

I’ve started to tag all of my favorite okra recipes on Delicious, so follow me if you want to learn more.  In addition, here are some interesting facts about okra that I’ve already discovered on Yahoo! Answers, thanks to you guys.

Finally my own koresh bamieh recipe, using eggplant instead of the traditional lamb. Bon appétit or, as they say in Iran, “noosh-e jaan,”

Ingredients:

• 2 large red onions, thinly sliced
• 4 medium sized eggplants
• 10 small yellow tomatoes
• 2 large red tomatoes
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 3 or 4 garlic cloves, minced
• Salt to taste
• Pinch of paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup tamarind sauce (recipe below)
• 1 pound fresh whole baby okra, washed and trimmed
• Water

Preparation:

• In a large pan, take about half (2 to 3 tablespoons) of the olive oil and sauté onions on medium heat till golden. Add turmeric and garlic, then sauté for another 5 to 7 minutes.
• Place the eggplant in the pan and brown on all sides. Add salt and pepper.
• Stir in the tamarind sauce and then cook for another 10 minutes.
• In a separate skillet, heat the rest of the olive oil and sauté the okra lightly for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the okra to the pan and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
• Stir in paprika or water, as needed.
• Serve hot with rice, yogurt, herbs, and bread.

Tamarind Sauce:

Place eight ounces of tamarind paste, with pods, in a bowl. Cover with hot water for an hour to soften. Using a spoon, a fork, or your fingers, separate the pods from the pulp to get the juice out. Add more hot water if needed. Discard the seeds and strings. Pour the tamarind liquid in a jar and add a cube of vegetable stock. Store in a cool, dry place.

Thanks for reading!