Okra, Avocado and Tomato Salad With Chili and Lime Juice

Name: Okra, Avocado and Tomato Salad With Chili and Lime Juice
Total time: 10 min
Yield: Serves four to six
Ingredients: 1 pound okra; 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded if desired, minced; 1 Hass avocado, cut in small dice; 1 pound tomatoes, cut in small dice; 1 small white or red onion, chopped, soaked for five minutes in cold water, then drained and rinsed optional; Salt to taste; 1/2 cup chopped cilantro; 5 to 6 tablespoons fresh lime juice; 1 to 2 ounces crumbled queso fresco or feta for serving optional

By Martha Rose Shulman

Total Time: 10 minutes
Rating: 4(75)
Comments: Read comments

This lively combination is inspired by one of my favorite Mexican salads, which is made with diced cooked cactus paddles (nopales), onion, tomato and avocado. Cactus paddles are gooey, like okra, so I figured okra could stand in for nopales in this salad. The result is prettier and, I think, tastier -- and certainly easier to work with than cactus. There is no need for oil in this salad. If you want less viscosity, you can marinate the okra in vinegar and salt first (see this week’s other recipes), but you will lose the beautiful color. You must serve this right away.

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Ingredients

Yield:Serves four to six

1pound okra
1jalapeño pepper, seeded if desired, minced
1Hass avocado, cut in small dice
1pound tomatoes, cut in small dice
1small white or red onion, chopped, soaked for five minutes in cold water, then drained and rinsed optional
Salt to taste
½cup chopped cilantro
5 to 6tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 to 2ounces crumbled queso fresco or feta for serving optional

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

Step 1
Trim the stems and tips from the okra, and place it in a steamer above 1 inch of boiling water. Cover and steam four minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and rinse with cold water, then slice about ¼ inch thick and place in a large bowl.
Step 2
Add the jalapeño, avocado, tomatoes and onion, if using. Season generously with salt, and toss together. Add the cilantro and lime juice, and toss well. Serve garnished with crumbled queso fresco, if desired.

Tip

Advance preparation: Because the colors will fade and the okra will become impossibly viscous, it’s best to serve this soon after assembling and tossing.

Ratings

4 out of 5

75 user ratings

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Comments

Mary S4 years ago

I’m not one who minds okra slime, but we roasted the okra rather than steaming it and that does reduce the slime factor. About 10 to 15 minutes in a 400 degree oven. We loved this and will definitely make it again. Nice alternative for using the okra from our garden.

Tara7 years ago

Not my favorite; it kind of brings out the worst in okra, slimy after a few minutes and not a great deal of okra flavor.

Rachel1 year ago

I used frozen sliced okra, which cut down on the prep time and worked perfectly. The okra really is a great sub for nopales!

Barb1 year ago

Nice try. The tomatoes were good. The okra... slimy. It ruined the other ingredients.

tracy10121 year ago

This was terrible. Steaming the okra made it extra mushy (and I normally love okra). Mixed with the avocado, the overall texture of the salad was very soft. There was also way too much dressing. If I made this again, I would sauté/roast the okra and cut the dressing way back.

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