Bucking for Domestic goddess Award - Part 1

Tarzan and I saw the familiar little sign on the side of the road, "Okra for Sale." So we drove down the country road to a house and the farmer (whose financial situation has improved from our bussiness for a few years now) let us in. We bought all he had picked and all of his cherry tomatoes. Yum. Now, what?

I reached back in the recesses of my mind and searched the Internet for quantities and we pickled and froze okra.

Frozen Okra is the easiest so I will tell you how to do that first. You should remember this-- okra doesn't get slimy until you cut it open, so whole okra is the only way to go.

• Get your deep pot and fill it with salty water
• Bring it to a boil
• Drop a bunch of okra into the boiling water and let it boil for 3 minutes
• Remove the okra from the water and place it in single layers on large flat cookie sheets and freeze it
• Once it is frozen, place it in freezer safe Ziplock bags
• Oh yeah, and put it back in the freezer

When you are ready to cook it, simply put the frozen okra in boiling water and cook it through. It should not be limp, rather it is better if it is still kind of firm. All it needs is salt and butter, but I have a bunch of other ways to use it if you need them just ask.

Pickled Okra
Once I get started on a bottle of pickled okra, I may as well just enjoy the whole bottle without guilt. It is better than pickles especially when the seeds pop in your mouth. Here is what you need:

-Fresh whole okra pods (the smaller okra works best, but it is not necessary)
-1 cup water
-1 quart white vinegar (don't get creative here, this is canning not a gourmet salad)
-1/2 c. salt (there is a special pickling salt, but it is hard to find, so remember the important thing is NO IODINE. We used Kosher salt)
-1 cloves garlic for each bottle
-Dill seed
-Fresh dill weed
-Hot dried chilli peppers (we like the red ones)

Sterilize your jars and lids in a hot boiling water bath (or the dishwasher if you have one).

Wash the fresh okra; drain well. In hot clean pint bottles, pour a little dill seed in the bottom of the bottle, pack the okra pods, as tightly as you can without bruising them, leaving 1/2 inch head space. Add 1 chilli pepper, 1 garlic clove, a little more dill seed and 2 sprigs of dill weed on top.

Combine the water, white vinegar and salt. Bring the mixture to boiling. Pour the hot liquid over the okra pods in the jars, leaving 1/2 inch head space. Wipe jar rims, adjust lids. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Let the bottles stand for 2 weeks before opening.

Yum!, Next--Prickly Pear Jam