Okra, like eggplant, is the kind of vegetable that elicits strong reactions from people. I personally love it and I’m sad that we are at the end of okra season in NC. We eat it roasted, fried, sautéed, cooked in gumbo and stewed (my personal favorite). There is some special food magic that happens when you combine okra and tomatoes. Actually, there is some wonderful magic when you combine almost anything and tomatoes. And when you cook these two veggie BFFs slowly and stew them together with onions and garlic, oh my. I could eat that for lunch and dinner every day. I keep my okra whole for this–I don’t mind the slight slime factor with okra, but keeping it whole while you cook it does decrease that aspect. This dish is easy and very healthy. If you have some leftover okra and some extra tomatoes you’re not sure what to do with, try this!

Stewed Okra and Tomatoes

• 1 yellow onion, chopped fine
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 quart okra (best if they are smallish), washed and stems trimmed
• 3-4 large tomatoes (about 2 lbs.)
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. Add the onions and garlic, stirring to prevent over browning. Saute for 2-3 minutes until onions are soft and translucent.
2. While onions are cooking, core tomatoes and chop each tomato into 4-6 even pieces.
3. Add okra to the onions and stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Reduce heat to medium and saute about 3 minutes.
4. Add tomatoes to the pan, turn the heat to medium low and cook about 15-20 minutes, until tomatoes have given up their juices and the mixture starts to thicken. The okra should be very soft. If not, continue cooking, adding small amounts of water if the mixture gets dry.
5. Correct for seasoning and serve!