Slow Cooker Beef and Okra Bamia

If you're from the Centre East, chances are you grew up on this classic okra stew, served with a big plate of rice. In Arabic, Okra is called "Bamia" or "Bamya" and it'southward very common in many households. It'south cooked with lamb or beef in a lycopersicon esculentum and garlic goop, and uses simple flavours that marry together so well! It's one of my favourite stews and it's really simple to brand. If yous want a taste of every day Standard arabic cuisine... this 1 is a must try.

Table of contents

• What is Okra Stew (Bamia)?
  • What does Okra gustatory modality like?
  • How do I reduce the sliminess from Okra?
• How to make Okra Stew with meat
  • Should I use fresh or frozen Okra?
  • Do I need to fry or pre-cook the Okra?
  • How do I make this dish vegetarian?
• What do you serve with this dish?
• For more than related recipes, check out:

What is Okra Stew (Bamia)?

Okra stew is made up of okra (duh), onions, garlic, tomatoes or tomato paste, pomegranate molasses and meat. The ingredients are cooked together in the meat broth and create a stew that typically turns into this luscious thickness due to the Okra'south natural thickening properties. The meat tin be lamb, veal or beef. Craven works as well if that's all yous have!

What does Okra gustatory modality like?

Okra has a mild taste and the texture can vary depending on how it'southward cooked. If it is sautéed or fried, information technology can retain some crunch. Merely when information technology is dull-cooked like in this stew recipe, information technology becomes tender and melts in your mouth. Information technology's normally compared to eggplant due to the texture, but their taste is different and I believe okra has a really unique flavor. The best way to find out is to try information technology! Okra is a highly nutritious food and would be a smashing vegetable to incorporate in your diet.

How do I reduce the sliminess from Okra?

Okra can exist slimy, and the all-time way to avoid or reduce sliminess is to exit information technology intact (similar in this recipe) and non cut it into pocket-size pieces. Cutting it will release a lot of the "sliminess" and result in a thicker consistency. When deadening cooked and in tact, there really isn't any slime and information technology simply becomes tender and delicious.

How to brand Okra Stew with meat

• Chop and melt the onion with a flake of table salt until slightly caramelized. This step adds amazing flavour
• Sear off the meat and dark-brown it slightly, then add the tomato paste and let information technology to caramelize. Once again, this stride builds more flavour to the stew
• Add together the okra, garlic, salt, and pomegranate molasses along with water and bring to a boil
• Let everything to boil for at to the lowest degree xxx minutes, and so bank check on the tenderness of the okra and the meat and suit the seasoning
• Add more water if required and go on to let information technology boil for another 30-40 minutes. This stew takes roughly ane hour for the meat and okra to tenderize and develop flavour

Should I apply fresh or frozen Okra?

If information technology is non in flavor, I recommend using frozen Okra. Fresh Okra out of season can be very tough and take hours to tenderize, and sometimes it actually doesn't become tender. You can usually tell that it'south going to be tough by the size - the larger the tougher information technology volition be. Okra should be harvested when information technology is young, and commonly the smaller the more tender.

That'south why I by and large rely on frozen small okra, which tin can exist found in various sizes from local Heart Eastern stores. If using frozen Okra, you tin can just add it into the stew without thawing information technology beforehand.

If you're using fresh okra, make sure to wash it well, so only trim the top a piffling flake so as non to reveal any of the seeds. Make sure yous don't trim it too much, otherwise information technology will lose its shape when cooking and likely release that "sliminess".

Practice I need to fry or pre-cook the Okra?

Some people fry or boil the okra with oil before adding it into the stew, which you can totally exercise. However, my mom never did this and I observe it a pace that you can skip to relieve time and besides calories. The final product will not be impacted, trust me!

How do I make this dish vegetarian?

If you want to make this vegetarian, simply don't include any meat, and I would recommend besides using vegetable stock in place of some of the water and doubling the amount of onions used. It will add more flavour to the stew. I do this all the fourth dimension as well and I love it!

What exercise y'all serve with this dish?

Okra stew, like many other Middle Eastern stews, is typically served with a plate of rice. We also serve either a salad or some chopped vegetables alongside it such as cucumber, green onions, and radish. I Honey information technology with dark-green onions (you take a scrap of rice + stew then a bite of green onion - information technology's and so skillful!). You tin also consume it with some bread - that's my dad's favourite way.

• Fasolia Yabsa (Iraqi White Bean Stew)
• Arabic Rice with Vermicelli
• Stuffed Onions
• I Pot Chicken and Rice

• ▢ 500 thousand veal cut into medium pieces (y'all tin substitute lamb or stewing beef - see notes)
• ▢ 800 g frozen small okra you tin can substitute fresh okra - run into notes
• ▢ i onion
• ▢ 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• ▢ v.5 tablespoons tomato paste
• ▢ 8 cloves garlic
• ▢ one.five tablespoon pomegranate molasses if unavailable, you can skip this - but highly recommend
• ▢ 1.five teaspoons common salt total corporeality, added in stages
• ▢ ½ teaspoon blackness pepper
• ▢ About 15 cups of h2o added in stages

• Start by dicing the onion finely and add it to a stock pot along with the vegetable oil and ½ teaspoon of salt. Cook it for 2-3 minutes until translucent

• Wash the veal pieces and season with ½ teaspoon common salt and ½ teaspoon blackness pepper

• To the pot, add together the washed veal pieces and chocolate-brown them from all sides for most 5 minutes

• Next add the love apple paste and and continue to melt for some other few minutes

• Add the frozen okra to the pot along with the garlic which should be roughly chopped, the pomegranate molasses and ½ teaspoon salt

• Add about 10 cups of water in the pot, mix everything well, and bring to a rolling boil on medium heat for roughly 30 minutes

• Later on xxx minutes, bank check the tenderness of both the okra and the meat. If they are both still slightly business firm, add more water (roughly four-5 cups) and allow it to continue humid for another 20 minutes

• Cheque the softness of the meat and okra, as well as the seasoning and conform appropriately. If okra and meat are both tender, plow heat off and serve

• I recommend using adept quality veal or lamb for this stew, as they are typically more tender than beef. However if all you have on hand is beefiness, that works fine too but expect a tougher consistency.
• Also for the meat, y'all can pressure cook it before starting the stew procedure to ensure it tenderizes in a short corporeality of time
• Small or young okra is recommended every bit it is much more than tender than the larger okra. I do non recommend using big okra - it may need a really long fourth dimension to cook, and sometimes it does not even soften

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Source: https://www.hungrypaprikas.com/okra-stew/

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