Stuffed Bhindi/Okra

It was raining last evening after I came home from work and the damp weather kind of put me in a mood to cook something warm, crispy and spicy and at the same time I did not want to make something healthy and avoid any deep fried dish. . I opened the fridge and saw the Okras and decided to make some crispy stuffed Okras and some Tomato Rasam/Saaru. So I whipped up the ingredients for both the dishes and had them ready for dinner by about 7:30 PM. We enjoyed our delicious dinner watching the monsoon/autumn rain. It was just wonderful! Here is the recipe for both the dishes. Please try it out and post your feedback/opinion on the blog.

Crispy stuffed Bhindi/Okra /Bendekayi

Ingredients

1. Bhindi/Okra – 25 Nos,
2. Besan flour/Kadle hittu - 1 cup
3. Red Chili powder – 2Tbsp
4. Amchur Powder – 3 Tbsp
5. Jeera powder – 1Tbsp
6. Shania/coriander powder – 1tsp
7. MDH Tava fry masala or any Garam masala – 2 Tbsp
8. A pinch of Haldi/Turmeric powder
9. Sugar (Optional)–A pinch
10. Salt to taste
11. Water as required
12. Oil – 5- 6 Tbsp

For seasoning

13. Mustard - 1 tsp
14. A pinch of hing

Method

1. Wash the whole Okra and pat them dry in a towel.
2. Mix ingredients 1 thru 10 by adding water little by little to form a thick paste.
3. Slit the Okras in the middle starting little away from the head thru the end.
4. Use a small spreading knife to take out the stuffing and fill the slit Okras (See Picture)
5. Take a large frying pan/Tava. Put 4-5 Tbsp oil and shake the tava to spread the oil.
6. Add mustard and hing and let the mustard sputter on low heat.
7. Put the Okra in the pan one by one and cook on low to medium heat. You can close the lid and from time to time you can sprinkle little bit of water so that the Okra and the stuffing inside gets nicely steam cooked.
8. The Okras are cooked when they turn golden brown all sides.
9. It takes about 20 -25 minutes.
10. Enjoy the yummy crispy stuffed Okras
11. Turn off the stove and delicious huli avalakki is ready.

Tip: You can use a non-stick tava or a thick bottomed pan. If you do not like the dryness of this stuffed okra dish you can sauté onion and tomatoes in a little bit of oil and add it to the stuffed Okra. This goes very well with rotis/Chappatis.