Okra salad has been gaining popularity and I often see it at Chinese restaurants in New York City. There are quite a few ways to enjoy the dish and every chef has their own favorite salad dressing. Today I want to show you two very quick and easy ways to prepare this nutritious and delicious vegetable.
Okra salad ingredients
There are two delicious ways to enjoy okra salad.
Cantonese dressing
The Cantonese style dressing uses soy sauce, oyster sauce and Chinkiang vinegar to create a savory umami base that has a zesty and slightly sweet taste. It is then spiced up with plenty of minced garlic and ginger, with a touch of nutty sesame oil. It results in a very balanced dressing that is quite fragrant and pairs very well with the blanched okra.
Sichuan-style dressing
The Sichuan-style dressing is one of my favorite ways to serve okra salad because it takes 1 minutes to throw together. I introduced the magic ingredient for it – green Sichuan peppercorn oil – in a previous post. Different from the warm taste from the red Sichuan peppercorn, the green variety, has a sharp grasiness that delights the senses. Green Sichuan peppercorn oil is used in the okra salad to add a very distinct fragrant and numbing effect that is very unique. A small amount goes a long way. Together with this ingredient, you only need a touch of soy sauce to enjoy a unique and fragrant okra salad. You can find green Sichuan peppercorn oil at Chinese markets, 50 Hertz Food (my favorite place to get extra fresh peppercorn oil), and at The Mala Market.
Frequently asked questions
How do you cook okra without it going slimy?
Okra often gets a bad reputation due to the slimy texture it gets if it’s not prepared properly. For okra salad, the best way is to blanch the okra whole without cutting it. If you cut it and then blanch it, it will make a mess in your pot and you will never get rid of the sliminess. Once cooked, you can either serve the okra whole, slice off the ends for a better texture, or slice each pod in half lengthwise for a nice appearance. Yes, the cooked okra might still have a hint of the sliminess when you bite into it, depending on the variety you get. But paired with the bold seasoning, that part of the texture is less noticeable.
How to get the best okra texture?
To get the best texture and the most nutrition value out of okra, the best way is to avoid overcooking it. If you like a firm texture, I would blanch the okra for 1 minute and no more than 1.5 minutes. You can cook it for up to 2 minutes for a softer texture, but definitely no more than that. Once done, you should either use an ice bath or run cold tap water to cool off the okra, so it won’t continue to cook in the residual heat.
What does okra salad pair well with?
Okra salad is often served in Chinese restaurants as a cold appetizer. You can certainly prepare it ahead of time if you’re cooking a multi-course meal. Its crispy texture, rich sauce, and somewhat refreshing taste pairs well with most Chinese dishes, especially the savory type that has a tender texture. Here are some of the dishes I love to serve it with:
Yang Zhou Fried RiceScallion Beef Stir Fry Real-Deal Xinjiang Cumin LambAuthentic Mapo TofuDan Dan NoodlesChinese Corn Soup
Afterthought
Okra is not a traditional Chinese vegetable and it only started to get popular in China over the last decade or so. But I fell in love with this vegetable when I was living in Japan. Okra salad is one of my favorite ways to enjoy okra, because of how easy it is to put it together and its great taste. I hope you enjoy it!
