Freezing Okra

I realize it may be too early in the season for many people to be thinking about what to do with excess okra, but here, in hot, dry, Southwest Oklahoma, I am already filling my freezer with one of our favorite garden items.

Freezing Whole Pods

To freeze whole okra pods, just select freshly picked, young pods, of uniform size. I like my whole okra no more than 3 inches long. Wash, and blanch for 3 minutes, or steam blanch for 4 minutes, drain, and pack in freezer bags or other freezer containers.

Freezing Sliced Okra

Most of my okra, I freeze in slices. We are from the South, and I'll admit, we do eat a lot of fried okra. For sliced okra, you can use pods of any size. Wash well and slice in 1/4 inch thick slices. Here, I should say, steam blanch for 3 minutes. And I will say that; in fact, what I'll say is: try it, and see if it is the texture that you prefer when thawed. I do not find that blanching the okra is necessary, and much prefer the end product when it is not. I just pack my slices in quart sized freezer bags, and tuck them in the freezer.

To Use

To use your okra in soups or gumbos, you might want to package them in smaller quantities, particularly if you are freezing whole pods. Or, you can just break off a handful, and toss it into the pot this winter, when you need it.

To make Fried Okra, thaw the bag of okra about 3/4 of the way. Then, break it up with your hands, and coat with either cornmeal or a combination of cornmeal and flour (if using both, about 2/3 cornmeal and 1/3 flour works well). Stir until all the okra is coated evenly, then let the okra set out for about 20 minutes before you fry it. As the okra continues to thaw, the coating adheres to it, and stays on better during cooking. Fry in about 1/4 inch of cooking oil, over medium-high heat, until the okra is brown and crispy. Salt and pepper to taste.

If you have questions, please post to the discussion area, or join our Preservers egroup at http://members.aol.com/preservers/group.... , where you will meet a lot of very helpful canners.....both experienced and not-so-experienced. And look for tasty recipes in which to use your garden produce in the other topic areas at www.suite101.com .

If you are always looking for new how-to's about canning, freezing, and dehydrating, and want

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