How to make Okra in a fragrant, tomato sauce: a recipe from chef Philip Juma

Philip Juma shares his recipe for warming okra in tomato, also known as bamia
Philip Juma
Philip Juma21 November 2016

With the cold weather and dark evenings settling in, I have decided to post a recipe that is warming, comforting, and simple.

Bamia is a staple in any Iraqi household, at any time of year. Traditionally my family would serve this with lamb, however, I have decided to share a vegetarian version; a rich immersion of okra, garlic, coriander, lemon and tomato, normally served with basmati rice.

For this recipe I have used frozen okra as they require less prep than fresh okra, without sacrificing any flavour. I tend to use grade zero okra as they are the smallest, and they can be found in most Middle Eastern grocery stores.

Ingredients (serves 4)

1 bag of frozen okra (Grade zero) – 400g

400g tinned, chopped tomatoes

1 bunch fresh coriander

3 tbls of olive oil

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced

3 cloves of garlic, peeled (whole)

1 large tbls of tomato puree

300ml water

1 lemon, juiced

1 tbls pomegranate molasses

Salt and pepper.

Method

Begin by finely dicing the onion, coriander. On a medium heat, place the oil in a saucepan, and add your onion and half of the chopped coriander. Sweat for 5 minutes and season with salt. Add the finely, sliced garlic and sweat for a further 4 minutes.

Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and water. You are looking for a rustic consistency, not too smooth and not too chunky. Add the 3 whole garlic cloves and cover for 10 minutes on a low heat, stirring occasionally.

Add the frozen okra, and turn the heat up for a few minutes while stirring. Cover the pot and place on a low heat for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Every 10 minutes, gently stir the okra ensuring the sauce in not sticking to the pan. As the okra cooks, they become more delicate so be gentle. Personally, I like my okra to have some bite to them so I take them off the heat a bit earlier than most for an al dente bite.

For the final 5 minutes, add the pomegranate molasses, lemon juice and remaining coriander. You want to sauce to reduce slightly and it should be thick, clinging to the okra. Taste for seasoning and adjust the sauce according to sweet and sour preference.

Serve with basmati rice.

Enjoy.

Philip Juma is the founder of Juma Kitchen. Follow him on Twitter @PhilipJuma and @JumaKitchen. Find more of his recipes for the Evening Standard here.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in