Charred Okra with a Little Spice

Charring okra on a stovetop grill or griddle results in delicious pods that are not slimy — one of our favorite late summer/early fall cocktail snacks. Tossed in a little olive oil and salt before grilling, then a touch of sambal oelek (Indonesian chile sauce) before serving, they’re super-easy to make. If you don’t have sambal oelek, any kind of chile sauce is fine; or just toss with some Aleppo pepper or red chile flakes. They also make a nice side dish.

This recipe was included in our September 2020 story about okra.

Ingredients

1 pound okra, sliced in half lengthwise

2 teaspoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sambal oelek or other chile sauce

Instructions

1. Heat a stovetop grill or griddle until very hot.

2. While the griddle or grill is heating, place toss the okra in a large bowl with the olive oil and salt.

3. Place the okra cut-side down the grill. (You may have to make these in two or more batches.) Grill until they have emphatic grill marks, or they’re nicely charred, about 7 minutes. Use tongs to turn them over and grill on the other side about 2 minutes more. Transfer them to a medium bowl and grill the next batch or batches, adding the okra to the bowl as they’re grilled.

4. Toss the grilled okra with the sambal oelek and serve.