Momma's Home Cooking

My favorite food in the world is my mother's.  I think everyone would say that. But, really, my mother's cooking is the best.  She makes the best Gujarati-style daal in the world. And when it has extra peanuts in it, my world is rocked. However, my favourite dish is okra panfried with spices, otherwise known as Bhinda Fry.

I went to visit my parents this week because my grandmother in India passed away and I wanted to go console my father since he wasn't able to go there.  Of course my mom made my favorite dish!  I will share the recipe here. But be aware that the amounts of ingredients may not be quantitative. That's our way of doing things.

Bhinda (Okra) Fry

1 16 oz bag of frozen cut okra (or 1.5 lbs fresh, washed and chopped discarding tops and bottom tips)
Few tbsp canola oil
1/4 tsp fenugreek (methi) seeds
1.5 tsp fresh garlic (ground or paste)
1 tsp fresh ginger (ground or paste)
fresh green chilies to taste (chopped fine)
1/2 tsp ground coriander/cumin seeds
1/2 tsp whole cumin seeds
1/4 tsp ground red chili powder
salt to taste

1) Heat fenugreek seeds in oil until they turn dark brown
2) Put garlic, ginger, chilies, salt and dried spices in a spoon, and add to hot oil and cook for 10 seconds.
3) Add okra and mix with spices.

4) Cook for a while until okra has no more slimy stuff (sounds gross, but it's not!) and is dry and darker in colour.

Eat with fresh roti.

***You can also add small diced potatoes with the okra if you want.

To make roti, measure out some quantity of flour (1 or 2 cups; and preferable roti flour or roti atta, as it is called in Indian markets).  Add a bit of oil, like 2 tsps and mix with hand until flour and oil mixture are a bit crumbly.  Then add luke warm water until dough mixes into a ball.  If too much water is added and dough is sticky, add more flour.  Once dough is pliable, add some oil so it won't stick to surfaces.

Then take a  small amount of dough and roll with a rolling pin into a circle. Meanwhile, preheat a flat frying pan or skillet on the stove on high.  When it's hot, take a paper towel with some butter on it and grease the pan slightly.  Roll the roti to about 1/16 of an inch and put onto the pan. Let the first side bubble just slightly and then turn it over.  When the bubbles formed become dark, transfer the roti on the other side again and allow it to fluff up.

Sound strange? Watch this or this.