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Fried Okra Recipe

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A Classic and Southern Fried Okra Recipe — the flavor is amazing, and the fresh okra comes out with a beautiful golden brown color with a perfectly crunchy texture! This is one of the best okra recipes around!!!

A Classic and Southern Fried Okra Recipe -- the flavor is amazing, and the fresh okra comes out with a beautiful golden brown color with a perfectly crunchy texture! This is one of the best okra recipes around!!!

My Fried Okra Recipe Origins

This Southern fried okra recipe is dedicated to my daddy.  I realize that a lot of the things I wanted to learn how to cook and bake came from figuring out what foods made him excited. For instance, he loves key lime pie, fried catfish and fried okra, and I learned how to make those things early on growing up.  I seriously think I fried my first fillet of fish around 11 or 12 years old and got pretty darn good at it too.  Each Friday, my dad got off early from work and would pick me up from school right on time.  We would then go home and have a fish fry.  Those definitely brought him back to his Mississippi southern roots.

Fried Okra Recipe - Best Okra Recipes

How to Fry Okra

Frying okra could not be easier.  I love to start with fresh okra however you can absolutely use frozen okra that has been thawed out.  The most important thing to remember is to keep the texture intact.  Most people don’t enjoy okra because of a somewhat slimy texture.

To help the okra adhere to the batter, I like to use a bit of egg wash.  It really serves as a binder.  Lastly, real Southern fried okra should always have a batter base of corn meal.  There is nothing more southern than that.  The crunchy and grittiness is fantastic with the okra along with bread crumbs and flour that really give a crispy bite.  I like to flavor the okra with a bit of paprika and if you want to really bring home some spice, a little cayenne pepper wouldn’t hurt either.

Fried Okra Recipe - How to Fry Okra

I told you all about the essentials of fish fries when I shared my Hush Puppy recipe earlier this year, and I loved sharing the country fun of frying up Green Tomatoes this summer too, but a fried okra recipe is just as iconic when it comes to southern and soul food cooking.  Nowadays if you want a quick fix, you can go to Cracker Barrel or any neighborhood southern restaurant and order some but I love the homemade ones best.  These fried okra are perfectly spiced to your liking, crispy and best eaten right out of the fryer.   Fry these babies up and see what all my daddy’s fuss is all about!

Love it fried?  Try these incredible fried recipes:
4.34 from 3 votes
Southern Pan Fried Okra Recipe | Grandbaby Cakes
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Fried Okra Recipe - How to Fry Okra
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
25 mins
 
A Classic and Southern Fried Okra Recipe -- the flavor is amazing, and the fresh okra comes out with a beautiful golden brown color with a perfectly crunchy texture! This is one of the best okra recipes around!!!
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Southern
Keyword: classic recipe, okra, vegetable
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 169 kcal
Author: Jocelyn Delk Adams of Grandbaby-Cakes.com
Ingredients
  • 12 ounces fresh okra cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 large eggs beaten with 1 tablespoon water
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
  • 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
  • 1/8-1/4 teaspoon paprika optional- go up to 1/4 teaspoon if you like spicy foods
  • Oil for frying
Instructions
  1. Season okra with salt and pepper.
  2. Add eggs to a separate small bowl.
  3. Combine flour, cornmeal, seasoned bread crumbs and paprika into another small bowl and whisk together.
  4. Begin by dipping okra into cornmeal and flour coating.
  5. Next add okra to eggs coating on all sides.
  6. Lastly dip back into the coating and set aside okra on baking sheet.
  7. Repeat dredging process until all okra is ready.
  8. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium high heat.
  9. Fry okra until golden brown and drain on paper towels.
  10. Serve warm.

Recipe Video

Nutrition Facts
Fried Okra Recipe - How to Fry Okra
Amount Per Serving
Calories 169 Calories from Fat 27
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 3g 5%
Cholesterol 62mg 21%
Sodium 162mg 7%
Potassium 269mg 8%
Total Carbohydrates 28g 9%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Sugars 1g
Protein 6g 12%
Vitamin A 10.7%
Vitamin C 16.1%
Calcium 7.4%
Iron 11.2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Comments

  1. Brenda says

    December 20, 2018 at 7:47 pm

    I love your backstories to your recipes!

    Fried okra was a regular dish for Sunday dinner during okra season when I was a girl in the 1960’s. My grandma would put cut okra into a large bowl, crack a few eggs over it, add salt and pepper, then sprinkle corn meal over it until it was nice and gooey. Then she’d fry it in her cast iron skillet. When I asked her how many eggs, how much corn meal, etc., she said she just added the ingredients until she got happy! I’ve been using her approach for years and my two sons love it. Now that I’m a grandma, that’s the first thing they want for dinner when they come home for Christmas. I think I’m going to sneak in some paprika this year and see if they notice! Thanks!

    Reply

  6. Bill says

    August 23, 2014 at 10:01 am

    Now you’re singing my tune, Jocelyn! Love my fried okra and yours looks absolutely perfect. I see your southern roots in this post! 🙂

    Reply

  8. Carol at Wild Goose Tea says

    August 20, 2014 at 4:57 pm

    Okra just came up as a major discussion at my family reunion. We are TOTALLY northerners. We had fresh okra
    and wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. There wasn’t an easy way to check. Darn—this looks wonderful.

    Reply

    • Jocelyn (Grandbaby Cakes) says

      August 20, 2014 at 5:07 pm

      I totally understand the northerner side for sure. Next time you have fresh okra, you can try this.

      Reply

  11. marcie says

    August 20, 2014 at 11:48 am

    I love your stories about cooking for your family, Jocelyn — that’s so sweet you learned to make your daddy’s favorites so young! Can you believe I love okra but have never had it fried? I could eat this entire bowl it looks so good!

    Reply

    • Jocelyn (Grandbaby Cakes) says

      August 20, 2014 at 12:20 pm

      Thanks so much Bianca! I love trying to recreate things I eat out at home. It is kinda fun to see how close I can get the renditions.

      Reply

    • Jocelyn (Grandbaby Cakes) says

      August 20, 2014 at 12:23 pm

      Girl yes, I know okra is an African cooking staple. The fried version is definitely more a soul food mainstay.

      Reply

    • Jocelyn (Grandbaby Cakes) says

      August 20, 2014 at 12:23 pm

      Oh gosh Helen, I had no idea that okra was so popular in Greece! You seriously learn something new everyday!

      Reply

  19. Alice // Hip Foodie Mom says

    August 20, 2014 at 7:19 am

    Jocelyn,
    love me some fried okra! I love that the first foods you learned to cook were the ones your father loved. You are totally daddy’s little girl and I love this! Those Fridays with your dad sound so sweet!! I hope my girls have sweet memories like this one with Paul. . 🙂 love this!

    Reply

    • Deborah says

      August 1, 2018 at 8:07 am

      This recipe is right up my alley with good ole fried okra.Here being just me I can fry some up and dig in.Now having it with some summer squash and onions and even along maybe even some corn on the cob.All this talk is making me hungry! Being southern let’s add a big glass of ice tea.I do love your recipes.Thank you for your shares.

      Reply

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