Okra Juice and Smoothie

We may know okra as an ingredient that's popular in Southern cuisine, fried on its own or added to a soup or stew such as gumbo. But gumbo, which grows well in hot climates and is often a popular addition to summer gardens, actually works great in a smoothie or juice. Here, it's combined with apples, carrots, and fresh ginger. Feel free to add your preferred milk or even water, along with some healthy greens such as spinach.

If you are unfamiliar with it, okra is a member of the family Malvaceae, which it shares with others of the ‘mallow’ family such as cotton, cacao, and hibiscus. This long, sometimes ridged and sometimes smooth pod is also known as ‘lady fingers’ in other countries, but in the United States, is best known simply as okra.

Frozen Okra Recipe

There is a great difference of opinion as to where okra originated. Some people believe it originated in Ethiopia, from where it is believed to have spread throughout Western Africa and on to central parts of the continent during the Bantu migration approximately 4000 years ago.​

Okra is referred to in the historical record by ancient Egyptians and Moors of the 12th and 13th centuries. Today, okra is particularly well established in the Southern US and its cuisine. It has a ‘slimy’ or mucilaginous texture and is not only wonderful simply fried, but also lends thickening to many Cajun and Creole dishes, including gumbo, an especially hardy and beloved stew of the South.