KITCHEN GADGETS TO THE RESCUE
There are just some ingredients I can’t master cooking using traditional methods.
Rice… Was a problem, until we discovered a Japanese programable electric rice cooker that plays a cute little tune when you press the ‘Cook’ button.
Whole globe artichoke & okra (aka ladies fingers) are another two things that spring immediately to mind.
November in Wales means long, dark, wet and windy nights that cry out for some comfort food. What better than a Cajun meal? This week seemed to have a Cajun theme to dinnertime. First we had Etouffee then last night was Gumbo. I wanted to see if I could cook the perfect Okra to go in the gumbo.
The last time I tried cooking with Okra I was left with a slimy mess. So I turned to another piece of kitchen technology – the Sous Vide – and was rather pleased with the outcome.
Sous Vide Okra
Preheat the water bath to 82 degrees centigrade
Trim the tops off the Okra
Place the okra in a cooking bag
Seasoning can be added at this stage, but I decided not to season as I was adding them to the gumbo
Seal the bag using a Vacuum Seal
Cook for 15 minutes in the Sous Vide
After 15 minutes place in an ice bath for 10 minutes
Remove Okra from the bag, pat dry and cut into bite size pieces
Add to cooked gumbo and stir until the okra has warmed through
Serve immediately.
I wonder…sous vide a globe artichoke next? If I can find one in the local supermarket. Or maybe we should consider growing our own next year. After all it meets all the criteria for deciding what to grow on our small holding.
We like to eat it
It’s relatively expensive to buy
It’s difficult to buy
Perhaps next year we’ll also experiment growing okra in the hydroponic polytunnel it being an ideal plant to grow in pots.
hydro2plate 