Okra (MY way)

Holy Cow!  I haven't blogged since June 3rd...it has been one busy summer! With work, a wedding, vacation...oh yeah...and 4 kids, it's been CA-RAZY!
This recipe just may be worth the wait though.  2 ingredients...I repeat...2 INGREDIENTS!  This time of year backyard gardens are spilling over with veggies, especially okra.  Not that I have a garden.  But, my mom has a garden this year.  Not that my okra came from her garden...not that I have gotten ANYTHING from her garden...I'm thinking I need to talk to her about that!  Regardless, the local supermarkets are also overflowing with it AND if it's not summer, you can always find it in the frozen food section. 
I know that most of you will gasp in shock and maybe insinuate that I am un-American or maybe just un-Southern...but, I DON'T LIKE FRIED OKRA!!  There I said it. While I'm at it...I DON'T LIKE STEWED OKRA!!  It feels good to have it out in the open.  I like pickled okra.  AND...I love anything cooked in bacon grease...which brings us to today's recipe!


The stars of my show:
Okra  - a little tip about picking out good okra...bigger is not necessarily better! If it gets too big then it tends to be dry and hard.  This is obviously not the prettiest okra out there, but who am I to judge an okra by its cover?

Bacon Grease - my relationship with bacon grease could be misconstrued as a love affair!

Wash and cut off the ends of the okra.  Then slice it into 1/2 in rounds.

Now, this part will be determined by the amount of okra you have.  I had, maybe, a pound of okra and used 2 tbs of bacon grease. 

Make sure it is sizzling hot before putting in the okra.  Otherwise, the okra will just sit in the grease and soak it up (not what we want)!



Throw it all in and stir it well to coat all of the okra.  Add salt...

I add LOTS of salt and I threw in some cajun seasoning and black pepper! Mmmm!

Okay...let me just say (in my own defense)...I told you already that it was a crazy summer!  In all of the excitement of fresh okra and whatever else may have happened while I was cooking dinner...I never got a "real" picture of the finished product.  I did, however, snap a quick pic of the last spoonful before I scarfed it down! 

When done the okra should be soft in the middle, browned and slightly crispy on the edges.