This classic southern recipe for braised okra and tomatoes with bacon, peppers, onions and celery makes a flavorful side dish.
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There’s a reason the Southern dish of braised okra and tomatoes is timeless. It’s just good!
Okra is a summer vegetable, but you can get frozen okra year-round that’s perfect braised like this. If you don’t have access to okra at all, you can prepare green beans in a similar way (see recipe).
Do you have a favorite okra summer dish? Please let us know in the comments. I love Okra and am always looking for ways to cook with it.
More Southern style side dishes
- Southern Cornbread
- Southern style collards
- Classic southern buttermilk biscuits
- Fried Green Tomatoes
- Cajun-style dirty rice
From the editors of Simply Recipes
Creole-style braised okra and tomatoes
You can use either whole or thickly sliced okra for this recipe.
Of course, we think this dish tastes best with bacon, but if you don’t eat bacon or want to make a vegetarian dish, skip it and use a tablespoon or two of olive oil instead.
ingredients
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2 ounces baconsliced crosswise into 1/4-inch wide (bacon)
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1 Cup rolled Onion (about 1 medium onion)
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1 cup diced paprika (about 1 pepper)
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1/2 Cup rolled celery (about a rib)
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1 teaspoon chopped garlic (about 1 clove)
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1 teaspoon kosher salt
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1 (fifteen–ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes and their juices
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1 pound (16–ounces) frozen or fresh okraWhole or thickly sliced, with hard ends removed as a whole, thawed when frozen
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1/2 teaspoon black pepper
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1 teaspoon fresh thyme
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1 prize cayenne
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1 prize Cinammon
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1 little prize Ground carnations (Small things have a big impact)
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1/2 Cup water
method
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Cook the bacon bacon until lightly browned:
Place the bacon bacon in a heavy-bottomed (3 or 4 quart) saucepan. Heat over medium-high heat and cook until bacon is lightly browned and most of fat has run out.
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Add the onions, celery, peppers, and then the garlic:
Once the bacon is browned, add the onions, celery, and bell peppers. The bacon should have released enough fat to cook the veggies, but if not, add a tablespoon of olive oil to the pot.
Cook over medium-high heat until onions, celery, and peppers are lightly browned, about 8-10 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
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Add the remaining ingredients, water, then simmer:
Add the tomatoes, okra, and salt to the saucepan. Add black pepper, cayenne, thyme, cinnamon and cloves. Stir to combine.
Add 1/2 cup of water.
Cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes.
Add more salt and pepper to taste.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 131 | calories |
| 5g | Fat |
| 14g | carbohydrates |
| 8g | protein |
