Serve it alone as a flavorful side dish, or pair it with a tasty dipping sauce and serve it as a snack. I love okra. I suspect it’s a bit like cilantro in that people either really like it or strongly dislike it. The most common objection is that it has a slimy texture. Okra is slimy because it contains mucilage, which is heat-activated. So if you don’t cook it properly, it can have an unpleasant texture. Luckily, there are cooking methods that greatly reduce sliminess. One of them is roasting. Another one is to actually take advantage of the mucilage and use okra in thick stews such as this okra stew. And the third one is grilling, as we do here.
Ingredients
You’ll only need five simple ingredients to make grilled okra. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below. Here’s an overview of what you’ll need: Fresh okra: Okra is in season in the summer, so that’s when you are most likely to find it in the supermarket. I don’t recommend using frozen. Olive oil: I love cooking with this delicious oil. But if you’d rather use an oil with a higher smoke point, you can use avocado oil instead. Melted ghee is another tasty option. To season: Kosher Salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. If using fine salt, you should reduce the amount you use, or the dish could end up too salty. I actually prefer using garlic powder to using fresh garlic, as I feel that it better coats the okra.
Instructions
Grilling okra is so easy! Scroll down to the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps:
- Your first step is to heat up your grill on medium-high heat. I usually grill indoors, using either a double-burner cast-iron grill pan (as shown in the video below) or a George Foreman grill. But you can obviously use an outdoor grill.
- Next, trim the okra on both ends and toss it with olive oil and spices. There’s no need to slice it for this recipe.
- Grill the okra until tender and browned, turning frequently, for a total of about 10 minutes (or about 5 minutes if using a dual-contact grill).
Frequently asked questions
Variations
This is such a basic recipe - not too many variations here. But if you’d like, you could add more spices. So in addition to garlic powder, you could use a little onion powder, and just a pinch of cumin. It goes very nicely with okra.
Serving suggestions
Okra goes well with many protein-based main dishes. It’s good with beef, poultry, and fish. I like to serve it with grilled main dishes such as skirt steak, grilled chicken breast, and grilled shrimp.
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