Turkish Okra Casserole
photo by Engrossed
- Ready In:
- 1hr 25mins
- Ingredients:
- 13
- Serves:
-
6-8
ingredients
- 1 lb okra or (10 ounce) package frozen okra
- 1 eggplant, about a pound
- 2 medium zucchini
- 2 medium green bell peppers
- 1 large onion
- 3 tomatoes
- 1⁄4 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons garlic, finely chopped
- 1⁄4 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
- 1⁄2 cup parsley, fresh, finely chopped
- 1 bay leaf, preferably fresh
- 1⁄2 teaspoon dried thyme
- salt, to taste
directions
- If using fresh okra, trim away any tough stems.
- If frozen okra is used, defrost and drain.
- Trim off the ends of the eggplant and cut unpeeled eggplant into one-inch cubes.
- Trim the ends of the zucchini and cut into unpeeled zucchini into one-inch cubes.
- Using a vegetable peeler, peel away the skin of the bell peppers; halve them and remove cores, veins and seeds.
- Cut bell peppers into one-inch pieces.
- Peel and dice onion into one-inch pieces.
- Peel, core and seed and dice tomatoes into one-inch pieces.
- Pre-heat oven to 375°F.
- Heat the oil in a large, heavy casserole (stove top/oven ware) and add the onion and eggplant cubes.
- Cook, stirring often, about five minutes.
- Add zucchini, tomatoes and green pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, about two minutes.
- Stir in the garlic, pepper flakes, parsley, bay leaf and thyme.
- Add the drained okra and salt to taste.
- Place in the oven, uncovered, and bake for about one hour.
- Remove bay leaf and serve.
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Reviews
-
This makes a ton! I selected this from the NAME tag game to make for my eggplant/okra loving hubby. I had to do the first steps in my largest saute pan and then transfer it to a 13x9 casserole...it barely fit. I used defrosted frozen okra, decreased the pepper flakes, doubled the thyme and used kosher coarse salt and course ground pepper. This was healthy and flavorful with a nice mix of veggies.
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Like Paula I made this as a vegetarian main dish; made a half quantity for the two of us. I did make a few changes; I didn't peel the bell pepper (one step too far for me!), slighlty reduced the pepper flakes and used a tin of tomatoes instead of fresh (out of necessity - or was that tomatoes!). But otherwise made as written. Really excellent, and a keeper. Mr B and I both rate this a 5.
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
Chef Kate
Annapolis, 60
<p>I have always loved to cook. When I was little, I cooked with my Grandmother who had endless patience and extraordinary skill as a baker. And I cooked with my Mother, who had a set repertoire, but taught me many basics. Then I spent a summer with a French cousin who opened up a whole new world of cooking. And I grew up in New York City, which meant that I was surrounded by all varieties of wonderful food, from great bagels and white fish to all the wonders of Chinatown and Little Italy, from German to Spanish to Mexican to Puerto Rican to Cuban, not to mention Cuban-Chinese. And my parents loved good food, so I grew up eating things like roasted peppers, anchovies, cheeses, charcuterie, as well as burgers and the like. In my own cooking I try to use organics as much as possible; I never use canned soup or cake mix and, other than a cheese steak if I'm in Philly or pizza by the slice in New York, I don't eat fast food. So, while I think I eat and cook just about everything, I do have friends who think I'm picky--just because the only thing I've ever had from McDonald's is a diet Coke (and maybe a frie or two). I have collected literally hundreds of recipes, clipped from the Times or magazines, copied down from friends, cajoled out of restaurant chefs. Little by little, I am pulling out the ones I've made and loved and posting them here. Maybe someday, every drawer in my apartment won't crammed with recipes. (Of course, I'll always have those shelves crammed with cookbooks.) I'm still amazed and delighted by the friendliness and the incredible knowledge of the people here. 'Zaar has been a wonderful discovery for me.</p>