Bhendi Masala(Okra with Spices)

Indian Cuisine always has a special place in the International Arena.Every region in India has it's own culinary blends for every recipe made.Infact every household has a unique way to make a dish with very simple ,as well as exotic spices.Indian vegetarian cooking in particular is very appealing,colorful ,tasty and exotic.

Today I am going to use Ginger,Garlic,Turmeric,Paprika and also a  blend of aromatic spices(Garam Masala) in my preparation of the okra.Okra is a very healthy,nutrtious,fibre rich vegetable and grows well in warmer climates and is even a drought resistant plant.This is a famous North-Indian dish which is very colorful and tasty.It is a highly preffered dish ordered by the customers in the Indian Restaurants in combination with Roti/Naan/Fried Rice.

Now let's get into the recipe details:

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I always keep some frozen vegetables handy so that when I am short of time or I run out of fresh vegetables these frozen veggies save my day.Today I am making a quick and easy Bhendi Masala.Today I used frozen okra/bhendi/bendakaya/lady-finger in this dish.This is a pretty simple dish to make with a blend of aromatic spices.Let's get started.........

Main Ingredients :
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Okra/Bhendi...............1.5lb(frozen)
Onion.........................1(big)
Tomatoes...................2(medium)
Lemon Juice...............2 tsp

Seasoning Ingredients :
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Canola Oil..........................1tbsp
Cumin Seeds..................... 1tsp
Turmeric.............................1tsp
Ginger................................1inch
Garlic.................................2(cloves)
GaramMasala Powder........2tsp
Chilli Powder......................2tsp(paprika)
Salt....................................to taste

Garnish :
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Cilantro..............................few leaves

Preparation :
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Place a cooking pan on the stove and add 1tbsp of oil to it and turn the stove on high heat(because we are going to add frozen okra and we do not want the temperature of the oil to go down) .

Once the oil is heated up add cumin seeds and then the frozen okra/bhendi to the hot oil and give it a nice stir so that the oil is coated to the okra and continue to cook on high heat for few minutes.

Slowly the okra/bhendi softens and starts to get sticky.Now add the lemon juice to it and give a stir and cover the pan with a lid.Lemon juice gets rid of the stickiness of the okra.

While the okra is cooking ,take the onion and cut it into big chunks.Now reduce the heat to medium-high.Remove the lid from the pan and add the onion chunks and turmeric to the okra and stir it well.

Meanwhile get the mortar and pestle and make a chunky paste of the ginger & garlic and add this paste to the pan of okra .Also add some salt to this ginger-garlic paste & add in the chilly powder and give a nice stir to the vegetables in the pan and continue cooking.

Meanwhile let us cut the tomatoes into big chunks and add them to the pan of okra.Also add the garam-masala & salt as needed(remember that we already added salt to the ginger garlic paste).Give a quick stir to the vegetables and let cook for few more minutes and turn off the stove.It's ready to serve.

Simple & easy to make , hearty & nutritious to taste.This dish goes well with hot jeera rice , peas rice , plain rice , rotis and naans.

Note :
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1)Fresh vegetables are always good but sometimes frozen vegetables are also a good option.

2)I use McCormick Paprika chilli powder.It's not at all spicy but gives a good color to the dish.If you are using very spicy chilly powder adjust the chilli powder in the recipe according to your taste.

3)I always use fresh ginger-garlic paste in my cooking ,you can use store bought paste too.

4)I use home made garam-masala powder you can use store bought powder too.

5)Garam Masala Powder is an aromatic blend of various spices like cinnamon,cloves,cardamom,coriander seeds,cumin,nutmeg,poppy seeds,bay leaves and few more.These spices are roasted and ground into a powder which gives a very unique aroma to every dish in which it is used.

6)All these herbs and spices used here give great benefits to the body by promoting good digestion and also the Garam Masala powder and Ginger-Garlic when used in cooking during Winter Season help the body to stay warm.In Summer it is better to use these spices in moderation.

Truth/Myth :

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When we were little if any little kid said 'no' to eating the okra/bhendi curry ,elders in the family used to say that eating the okra helps us improve our mathematical skills.

I am sending this recipe to  Susan(The Well-Seasoned Cook) who is guest hosting the Haalo's Weekend Herb Blogging(WHB #223)  the long-running weekly food blogging event, founded by Kalyn over four years ago.