This isn’t a traditional recipe, but something Panditji, my family’s chef, and I came up with when I was eight. Originally, we halved the okra lengthwise and marinated it with chickpea flour, lemon juice and spices. In the US, I streamlined the recipe and found it more addictive than ever. Although I think of it as a salad, others call it a side dish, an ideal substitute for French fries. You can serve it as either. In 2018, for its 40th anniversary, the Food and Wine Magazine came out with a book titled 40 Best Recipes of the Last 40 Years. This recipe was the only one from the Indian subcontinent and featuring a chef from our region. A moment of great pride for me.

  • Serves

    4

  • Cook Time

    01 h 00 m

Ingredients

  • 450 gm okra, stems removed and thinly sliced lengthwise
  • 1.5 tsp chaat masala
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp toasted cumin seed powder (bhuna jeera)
  • 2-3 small red onions, thinly sliced
  • 3 small tomatoes, cored, seeded and thinly sliced
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • Canola oil or any neutral oil

Preparation

  1. Heat 2 inches of oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot to 350°F (approx 176°C). Add 1/3 of the okra and fry for 5 to 7 minutes until browned and crisp.
  2. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and repeat with remaining okra, making sure the oil temperature comes back to 350°F before frying additional batches.
  3. In a large bowl, toss the okra with the onions, tomatoes, coriander, lemon juice, chaat masala, toasted cumin powder and salt. Taste for seasoning and serve immediately.
  4. Tip: For nicely seasoned crispy okra, season with chaat masala and some salt as it comes out of the oil and you drain it on the paper towels. This is in addition to the seasoning you will add as per recipe. 

Written by

Suvir Saran

Suvir Saran, the Chef-Owner of The House of Celeste in Gurgaon, is Scroll Food’s Chef of the Month for August. A legend in New York’s food circles, Chef Suvir garnered a Michelin star at Devi, a first for Indian cuisine restaurants in North America. He is the chairman of Asian Culinary Studies for the Culinary Institute of America and has written three cookbooks: ‘Indian Home Cooking: A Fresh Introduction to Indian Food’, ‘American Masala: 125 New Classics from My Home Kitchen’ and ‘Masala Farm: Stories and Recipes from an Uncommon Life in the Country’. His fourth book, ‘Instamatic: A Chef’s Deeper More Thoughful Look into Today’s Instaworld’, released earlier this year. Chef Saran’s approachable style helped demystify Indian cuisine in the US and ultimately formed American Masala, his culinary philosophy that celebrates the best of Indian and American cooking.

See more by Suvir Saran