Potatoes and Okra

Potatoes and okra, two of my favorite plant based foods.  Given my ancestral make up I almost think I'm genetically programmed to like potatoes.  Of course, potatoes are a Southern staple and it's hard to think of a day without potatoes in some form.  Needless to say, even though not many potato recipes appear here, we eat a lot of potatoes.

All mixed up and ready for the skillet

I was wondering about a way to use some larger okra instead of frying them when I saw a reference to this dish in an email about potential things I'd like from Pinterest.  I got to looking around and found quite a few.  After that, it was just a matter of deciding how my version would be constructed.


Potatoes and Okra


2-3 russet potatoes, diced 3/8 inch
2-3 cups sliced okra
1 cup sliced red pepper
1/2 cup bacon grease\
1/2 cup corn meal mix
1-2 tsp salt
1-2 tsp pepper
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp roasted cumin
1-2 tsp chili powder
1-2 tsp cayenne pepper


Dice the potatoes and slice the okra and red pepper and put them in a large bowl.  Add the corn meal mix and toss to coat.  Add the spices by pinches and toss after each pinch.  Taste a bit to see when you get the seasoning level you like.  Heat the bacon grease in a large skillet.  Once the bacon grease is hot add the potato and okra mix to the skillet.  The skillet will be full.  Let cook for a bit then gently turn to keep the crusty part with the potatoes and okra it formed with.  Repeat until the potatoes are cooked and there are crispy bits scattered throughout.  Serve hot.  Serves 4-5.

Cooked and ready to serve

A note about bacon grease, like a good old school Southerner, I have a bacon grease pot in the cabinet.  If you don't have bacon grease, you can fry up 6 - 8 slices of bacon and use the grease from that though you may need to add some additional oil to get the correct amount.  Alternately,  you could use lard or vegetable oil of some sort but the vegetable oil won't add anything to the flavor.

We paired this dish with pan fried salmon and it was great.  I've talked about this method with salmon before.  Spread softened butter on the skin of the salmon and season with salt and pepper and place in  a hot skillet.  Season the flesh side and when the cook line is about halfway up the fillet turn it and cook the rest of the way. 

The potatoes and okra did well as leftovers also.  I added some more bacon grease to a skillet and refried them until heated through.  The leftovers were served with pork chops.

This is a simple filling dish that could stand alone if you wanted a vegetarian meal, just use vegetable oil in place of the bacon grease or lard.  However it is eaten it will be a winner.  Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Uncle T