Bhindi Bhaji

Preparation & cooking time: 20 minutes
Makes: 2-4 portions

Bhindi bhaji is one of my favourite Indian dishes (along with saag aloo!) and it is always a feature of my meal when I eat out at an Indian restaurant. As the way with all food though (in my opinion), making it at home is the way to do it if you can get hold of the delicious okra (also known as ladies fingers, bhindi or gumbo depending where you are from) so when I saw them in the shop the other day I knew I had to take them home and share this recipe with you. Okra is absolutely delicious and very good for you indeed with its high level of fibre, vitamin C, high level of antioxidants, calcium and potassium. It is a very quick and easy dish to make and it goes really well served with rice or spicy potatoes.

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 200g ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 450g okra, chopped into 1 inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons of rapeseed oil
• Salt and pepper

Method:

1.   Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium – high heat. Add in the onions and the spices and fry until the onions have softened (5 minutes or so). Add the tomatoes to the pan and cook for a further two minutes. 

2.   Add the okra to the pan and cook for 10 minutes or until the okra is cooked through. You can add a splash of water if the mixture looks a little dry.

3.   Add salt and pepper to taste and serve!