Fried Okra — The Last Good Thing Before the Season Turns

Mid-August and the end of summer is technically approaching, which means nothing in Alabama until at least October but which gives me permission to start thinking about the fall cooking list. I have been compiling it since late July: pot roast, apple cake, the butternut squash soup, pumpkin bread with browned butter, the apple butter, the first batch of chili. I am already looking forward to all of it.

Tyler and I talked this week about what we want, in the explicit way you have to eventually have that conversation. It went well. He wants what I want, which is to keep going in the direction we have been going and not to rush it and not to pretend it is not serious when it clearly is. He said I want to be around for a long time. I said I want that too. He said good, then we agree. He said it simply, like it was the easiest thing, which I think means it is.

I made a summer succotash this week, the last of the summer corn and lima beans and tomatoes from the farm stand, with a little smoked bacon and fresh basil. It is the kind of dish that marks the end of something: these are the last good summer vegetables and you should use them well. I ate it over brown rice for dinner and thought about what it means to be at the end of a summer that changed things. Some summers are just hot weather. This one was something more than that.

The succotash was the main event that night, but earlier in the week I had picked up a bag of okra from the same farm stand, and I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it. Fried okra is the other dish that says the end of summer to me—one of those things you make while the produce is still perfect, because you know you’ll miss it by November. It felt right alongside everything else this week: simple, unhurried, and exactly what I wanted.

Fried Okra

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 25 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh okra, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
• 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• Vegetable oil, for frying (about 2 cups)

Instructions

1. Prep the okra. Wash and dry the okra thoroughly, then slice into 1/2-inch rounds. Pat dry again with paper towels—dry okra fries up crispier.
2. Mix the coating. In a shallow bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper.
3. Make the egg wash. In a separate bowl, beat the egg with the buttermilk until combined.
4. Coat the okra. Toss the okra slices in the egg wash, then transfer them to the cornmeal mixture in batches, pressing gently so the coating adheres evenly.
5. Heat the oil. Pour the vegetable oil into a large cast-iron skillet or heavy-bottomed pan to a depth of about 1/2 inch. Heat over medium-high heat until the oil reaches 350°F.
6. Fry in batches. Add the coated okra in a single layer, being careful not to crowd the pan. Fry for 3 to 4 minutes per side, turning once, until golden brown and crispy.
7. Drain and season. Transfer the fried okra to a paper towel-lined plate. Season with an extra pinch of salt while still hot. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 210 | Protein: 6g | Fat: 9g | Carbs: 28g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 340mg