I love all things New Orleans, as you know – so trying okra seemed like a no brainer.

Okra is actually from the mallow family, which includes hibiscus and and cotton.  Who knew?  Okra is also called lady finger in some parts of the world, although not sure what lady has fingers that look like this.  Swamp lady, maybe?

I really, really wanted to batter and fry these (why is it that I have been wanting to fry things lately?).    But, I figured that was the easy way out to eat it LOL.  Instead, I just sprayed with some cooking spray, salt and pepper and roasted in the toaster oven for 15-20 minutes:

They actually looked pretty good.  I then bit into one:

Hmmm……  tried another bite and got a mucousy string.  I was expecting some sliminess, but I didn’t like it.  The taste was  good, kind of earthy and green.  A little like zuchinni, I thought.  It was the texture, and you all know how I can have a texture problem with my veggies.

So, I won’t be getting okra again to eat like this.  Might keep some on hand frozen for gumbo, since that gelatin is good for thickening.