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50 Recipes 2011, #30: Sambal okra
Aug. 24th, 2011 08:34 pmOnly 20 more to go!
We got a handful of okra with last week's CSA share, and not having time to pickle it, I searched online for a recipe for sambal okra, a simple but incredibly full-flavored okra dish we'd had at a local Malaysian restaurant. This version suffered slightly due to several substitutions I had to make -- no shrimp paste, so I used an anchovy and a little fish sauce; and the grocery store didn't have the right hot peppers, so I used two milder ones and an underripe tabasco from my garden. I also tossed in some green beans, an onion, and a carrot I had from the share, because there's nothing wrong with more vegetables in a dish.
Considering the substitutions, this was a damned good recipe. The okra was soft but still had a little bite to it, and was barely slimy at all; and despite the lack of shrimp paste, the dish had a mild underlying funk to it that was at least reminiscent of the real thing. It was a start, anyway. Next time: try to get some shrimp paste, and use something other than a nonstick skillet so I can get the same level of crispness the restaurant got on its okra.
We got a handful of okra with last week's CSA share, and not having time to pickle it, I searched online for a recipe for sambal okra, a simple but incredibly full-flavored okra dish we'd had at a local Malaysian restaurant. This version suffered slightly due to several substitutions I had to make -- no shrimp paste, so I used an anchovy and a little fish sauce; and the grocery store didn't have the right hot peppers, so I used two milder ones and an underripe tabasco from my garden. I also tossed in some green beans, an onion, and a carrot I had from the share, because there's nothing wrong with more vegetables in a dish.
Considering the substitutions, this was a damned good recipe. The okra was soft but still had a little bite to it, and was barely slimy at all; and despite the lack of shrimp paste, the dish had a mild underlying funk to it that was at least reminiscent of the real thing. It was a start, anyway. Next time: try to get some shrimp paste, and use something other than a nonstick skillet so I can get the same level of crispness the restaurant got on its okra.