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Grandmother Phillips' Fried Okra

Course Side Dish
Cuisine Southern
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 1 cup buttermilk OR 1 cup whole milk + 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 2 pounds fresh okra
  • 1 cup AP flour
  • 1 cup yellow cornmeal
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 dash cayenne pepper
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • canola or avocado oil

Instructions

Soak the okra.

  1. First, combine the milk and vinegar in a measuring cup. Let it sit for 15 minutes. (Alternatively: skip this step and use 1 cup buttermilk.)

  2. Next, wash and slice the okra into 1/2" - 1" thick rounds.

  3. In a medium-sized bowl, mix the okra and milk. Let this sit for at least 20 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix the remaining, dry in ingredients.

Coat okra.

  1. When your okra is done "marinating", drain the excess buttermilk.

  2. Toss the okra in the flour mixture. Toss in batches as to avoid the pieces clumping together, or coat each piece individually for best results.

Pan fry in a high-temp oil over medium heat.

  1. I find that this, too, works best in batches and there is no need to keep the okra on one side and tediously flip every piece halfway through cooking. It is fine to toss them in the pan and shake it around every now and then to evenly brown each piece.

Drain.

  1. Drain the okra on paper towels and sprinkle with a fine, table salt. After cooling, it can be placed in a bag and frozen for later.

Recipe Notes

*If you have the time and patience, batter each okra circle one at a time. Try to keep them as separate as possible!

**One of the greatest things about this okra is that each bite is a little different. It is fully homemade and thus "rustic" in both texture and flavor. Do not concern yourself over perfect knife cuts or even browning, as this okra should be a delicious, low-stress side!