Andhra-style stir-fried okra with tamarind and green chilli (Bendakaya vepudu)

Okra is a staple on the Indian table, and every community has several variations on how it is cooked. It is most commonly stir-fried, but it can also be curried or deep-fried. Here is a simple version of the dish that pops with flavour.

The okra is not slimy but soft and tender, depending on the cooking technique used. The combination of earthy okra paired with tart tamarind and a pop of green chilli is excellent. The flavours play on your palate, and this dish is addictive. For this dish use the baby okra as they both cook faster and are less fiberous. I generally pick out the small ones and use the only. The older okra tend to be tough.

This is a wonderful cookbook packed with traditional dishes. Archana Pidathala wrote it as an ode to her grandmother's cooking. This book is so much more than a collection of recipes; it brings to my table a history of the cuisine and people. Wonderfully written and with beautiful photographs, this cookbook fills a gap in my bookshelf in a cuisine I know little about.

For more delicious and spicy dishes from this cookbook, click here.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons oil

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon hulled black gram (urad) dal

10 curry leaves

1 large onion, finely diced

1-2 green chillies, slit in half longitudinally

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seeds

2 teaspoons sugar

1/2 lb okra, wiped clean with a damp napkin

1 tablespoon tamarind extract

1/2 cup water

Salt, to taste

Heat the oil in a large frying pan large enough to hold all the okra in a single layer. Add the mustard and fry on low heat. They will pop in 10 seconds. Add the cumin, gram dal and curry leaves and fry for 20 seconds.

Add the onion and green chillies and fry for 4 minutes until the onion is very soft but has not taken on any colour. Add turmeric, coriander, and sugar and toss all the ingredients carefully.

Add the okra, setting it into a single layer. Fry on low heat for 4-5 minutes with the lid closed. Add the larger okra 3 minutes before the smaller pods so they finish cooking at the same time; otherwise, the smaller pods will begin to mash into the dish.

Add the tamarind, water and salt and stir well, tossing the kra in the sauce. Cover with a lid and cook for 4 minutes, turning the okra over every minute. Remove the lid and cook on low heat until the thick sauce coats the okra—taste for salt.

Serve as a side with chapattis or rice.