Sunday, September 21, 2008

TWO THINGS CHALLENGE: Product/Label



Just like the LABEL says, Buy Fresh, Buy Local - Alabama.  Well that's the truth!   You really can't beat the fruits and vegetables grown right here by local farmers.  The PRODUCT ?  Some of you from around the globe might be scratching your head over this one. It's a vegetable that most folks around here either love or hate.  Chalk me up in the LOVE column.  It's good ole southern OKRA!  We eat if fried (nectar of the gods) or boiled (the word slimey is sometimes mentioned along with that).  We also eat it in gumbo and with corn, tomatoes and lima beans. That would be your succotash.   I loved finding this batch of okra displayed in a French wine box.  The lowly okra has climbed the food chain perhaps?

For more Two Things Challenge participants this week click here.

 The Tune du Jour is " Hang on Little Tomato" by Pink Martini
( I know I play this song a lot,  but tomatoes go with okra.  What else would I play???)


37 comments:

Julie said...

To someone from Australia, this post is like trying to read another language, Virginia. The second image is quite lovely - love the colours and anything in wood is wonderful. At one stage - not all that many years ago - I worked for a few months for a large wine retailer in Sydney and collected wooden wine boxes from France. Eventually my daughter insisted that sanity prevail!!

angela said...

The presentation makes the okra very tempting. As it happens we bought some a few weeks ago to put in a curry. It's called gombo here. I don't dislike it but slimey is a good way to describe it...
Eat local: yes, yes and yes!

Babzy.B said...

I also know them as gombos ,i tasted once and it was'nt a success but may be it deserves another try ;)

USelaine said...

I believe they are the seed pods of a hybiscus flower/plant relative. Like fresh figs, my first experience of these was in Turkey as a teenager on a homestay in 1977. I didn't know what I was eating in either case, and was sure they were unknown foods to Americans. Viscous, gelatinous, slime. But you gotta eat what you gotta eat. Give me a California grown avocado any day. 6^)

Webradio said...

Bonjour Virginia !
J'ai la chance d'avoir un grand jardin, avec fruits et légumes "biologiques". C'est meilleur !
Et les enfants aiment cueillir les fruits...
A plus tard...
--------------------
Hello Virginia !
I am fortunate to have a large garden with fruits and vegetables "biological". It is better !
And children love picking fruits...
See You later...

Jilly said...

Too right. Always buy local. I love that the second photo shows okra in a wooden wine box. Wonderful!

Laurie Allee said...

Oh, oh, oh... be still my Texas-born heart. Fried okra, I'm certain, is better than any mere ambrosia offered up by the gods. (Good made with flour -- perfect made with cornmeal...) And do I make a mean gumbo! Heck, I even put okra in my jambalaya. I gotta say, people who simply boil okra are the ones responsible for all that bad PR. It's like thinking you know potatos when you've only eaten reconstituted potato flakes!

Love these shots, V.

k said...

hmmm... here in africa its plain old okra and im afraid even the very handsome wine box aint gonna make me like 'em any more... like the tune du jour tho! i have linked to your blog, so i'll be back! sj

Anonymous said...

Okra is a first timer for me. Never saw it on a blog before today. Neat. I like the stuff.

Eki said...

Yes, yes, yes to all those fresh veggies and fruits ... Yummy and healthy. I didn't know ocra can be fried ... I might just try it. Do you have any recipe from the ol south that I can try with veggies, well a little meat or fist is okay too ...

Btw, I just replied to your email. Sorry for the very late reply.

Unknown said...

I lave the label, it looks old, with a bit of a kind of 30s or 40s look.
As to the okra, I think I know what they are and if I'm right we use them in some african food from Angola and Cape Vert. Delicious!

Virginia said...

Ya'll are too funny! First timers need to go with fried. Slice it in little pieces, dredge in cornmeal and fry in oil. Drain it really well and add salt. My grandmother always added some boiled okra on top of a big pot of black eyed peas. See? You learn all kinds of things on CDP blogs!!

Pat said...

I had okra years ago in Paris of all places, in a restaurant that specialized in the cuisine of Madagascar...it was awful, but everybody tells me how good fried okra is. Mine was definitely not fried. I would love to try some; it would grow here, but there just isn't any. Maybe I should buy some seeds when in the US and give to a friend with a garden....hmmm.

Photos are lovely and tempting!

Kitty said...

my mom used to plant okra in her garden.

I was always shocked by how tall the plants are, over 6 feet, just for those little things. What a lot of work!

Ken Mac said...

I grew up in NC hating okra. Now I love it, but there ain't none in NYC! How do you like yours? Fried? In stew? with tomatoes?

Ming the Merciless said...

Okra is common in Asian cuisines so I grew up eating it. I love it in Indian curries.

And in gumbo too, of course. I LOVE GUMBO!

Virginia said...

KM, fried is my favorite, but I also like it with my peas like my grandmother cooked it. I even add it to my homemade vegetable beef soup!

Ming, I knew you would visit today! In curry? I am not sure about that one but I'll take your word for it.

Kitty, my grandaddy planted it in his garden each year. He warned me not to get in the okra plants. Of course I did anyway and those fuzzy leaves and stems stung my legs so badly. I hotfooted it outta there. He chuckled.

Kate said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kate said...

The name does not appeal to me nor have I ever tried the food itself. Guess it's about time that I do. Guess I'll have to find a Southerner to do it right. PS. Fresh and local is the best; if only it was year round!! PSS. Good grief; I can't seem to be able to post this. Being punished for my northern prejudices re. okra?

Wayne said...

Laurie is right. I think lots of us went off some veg or other early on just because we were served it by someone (not mentioning anyone by name) didn't know how to cook it. Spinach boiled to within an inch of it's life comes to mind.

I have not had okra in any form, or gumbo or grits. I think I've probably eaten jambalaya.

Nice pics Virginia, I particularly like the retro Alabama label.

Marie Reed said...

With all of the wonnderful farmer's markets everywhere buying Alabama produce is a snap too!

Marie Reed said...

I missss Okra!

MamaHen said...

No one mentioned pickled okra, which is so incredibly good! I almost like it better than regular pickles.

marley said...

Two great photos for the challenge. I didn't realise that Okra was used in cooking in your part of the world. I know it mainly from Indian food at the local restaurant. I'm always learning something new through CDP blogs!

Virginia said...

E.R.,
How on earth did I forget pickled okra????? What ? am I crazy?? You are right, and the hotter the better.

For those of you who don't know , Marie Reed may be a Frenchie now, but she has southern roots and we are proud to claim her. MR, do you think I could sneak you some okra in my luggage when I come to Paris??

Jane Hards Photography said...

I'm with Marley it's to us in the UK an indain cuisine thing, "ladies fingers"is also how it's refered too.
It's not a food stuff I have ever tasted in isolation to judge and as far as buying it. Not a chance. Garlic bulbs are excotic for Ramsey.

Janet Kincaid said...

Okra: Yummy. Great pictures for this challenge, Virginia! Glad you joined us this week. Next week's challenge is Green / Blue. Just FYI! ;-)

Kris McCracken said...

I am also a big fan of buying local. It doesn’t hurt when you have the loveliest goods in the country (world?) here in Tasmania of course!

I have never been brave enough to give the okra a burl, maybe I will pick some up tonight.

Knoxville Girl said...

Love the sign. I believe in buying local. But I'll confess, I'm an okra hater. More for you, V.
Will you forgive me if I mention that I like grits?

Virginia said...

Like I said, it's pretty obvious that most everyone falls in the "Lovers" or "Haters" category. If you haven't had it fried ( by someone in the south) your vote doesn't count. One thing I learned today is that it's an ingredient in Indian cuisine. Who knew?! And don't rule out pickled okra. I know it sounds weird but it's delicious.

Wayne said...

Virginia forgot to mention that she works for BOMB, the Birmingham Okra Marketing Board.

Janet said...

We are in the LOVE our okra category, and you might love the Okra Festival over at Burkville (near Montgomery) every summer.
My favorite okra recipe is an okra-tomato stir fry along with peppers and onions and seasonings.

Marie Reed said...

Pickled Okra! I'm in heaven...swooning...fainting... thonk!

Halcyon said...

Hmmm... I don't hate okra, but I don't really love it either. Put me in the indifferent category.

Rob said...

I can't say I've had ofra before, not a product readily available here. I'm curious now, I must search for this and try it.

Lucky Dip Lisa said...

Lovely photos, I like your 2things entry. Great composition and warm lighting. Have heard of Okra...but never seen it til now. Looks like a skinny cousin if a zuchini or corgette. I imagine in tastes similar....

Louis la Vache said...

What a hoot reading all these comments about okra! "Louis's" mother always fried it, using the cornmeal batter. Oh so good!

"Louis" noted the wooden wine box is from a California winery....