Okra Ladyfinger Curry With Tomatoes
Okra curry or vendakka curry made in tomato masala gravy using spices goes great with rice or Indian dishes like chapathi, poori etc. I usually make this okra curry without coconut milk or any cream as well, but you may also add a little coconut milk or heavy cream to make it even more creamy and delicious. Okra is more popularly known as bhindi in North India, where it is mostly prepared in more popular ways like bhindi masala. This dish is different from bhindi masala, but it’s very delicious, spicy and easy to make at home!
This okra recipe with gravy made using tomatoes, onions and spices is a South Indian Kerala style vegetarian recipe, and if you do not use any dairy cream it will be vegan as well.
Okra or lady finger which is known as vendakka in South India, is a very healthy and delicious vegetable perfect for making side dishes or snacks, but it has got slime which causes slippery texture which can go really wrong if not handled properly.
I have this fried okra recipe here if you want to learn how to fry okra for side dish without using cornmeal, eggs or flour and without retaining any slime.
This vendakka curry or okra curry (ladyfinger curry Indian style) is made with fresh tomatoes and spices for gravy.
See fried eggplant curry for rice here.
I made this vendakka curry for rice inspired by the Kerala style cooking, and I usually make this vendakka curry without coconut (as most of the Kerala style ladyfinger dishes have coconut).
However, I will add coconut milk or heavy cream as optional ingredients, in case you want to make it more creamy & rich!
This okra curry is even delicious without adding coconut milk or heavy cream, but you may add any of those to make it more delicious.
When okra is added to make curry recipes, if you don’t follow the steps carefully, the slimy substance (which is healthy anyway) will completely change the dish if not done right.
To me, okra is a very tricky vegetable to be used in recipes. I just can’t add the lady fingers to curry recipes just like other vegetables.
You will be lucky if it turns out to be OK but there is high chance of it going wrong if you are new to cooking with lady fingers or if you are not following the recipe properly.
It’s all still fine if you really like the slimy texture of okra.
However there are many picky eaters who will just disapprove of okra (ladyfinger) dishes if the okra is slimy in the dish.
So this vendakka curry is made after many trial and error versions of the same, and it turned out to be perfect to be used for rice.
Please use young and small okras (lady fingers) for curry dishes as the matured ones will have a hard texture which is not suitable for curry dishes.
The secret to making the perfect lady finger curry or okra curry (vendakka curry) is to prepare the lady fingers first which is then added to the curry gravy you have made.
Don’t try to cook the lady fingers in the gravy for this recipe, since we need to cook the lady finger separately from the gravy.
For this vendakka curry recipe, we are preparing and frying the lady fingers (vendakka) first and then adding the fried okra to the prepared gravy for curry.
We do not add salt early, we add the salt only at the end of frying okra, for the best results.
So we will always start by preparing the lady fingers for the curry and then cook the lady fingers and make the gravy for it.
So here is how you can make this vendakka curry following this vendakka curry recipe with tomatoes.
You may slightly adjust the spices based on your preferences, I used a combination of curry powder and garam masala powder, but you may also use just one of these if you like it that way.
So here is how you can make delicious okra curry in tomato gravy.
How to make okra curry in onion tomato gravy?
We use the following ingredients to make easy, delicious okra curry for rice, chapathi & poori.
ingredients to make okra curry in onion tomato gravy
2 cups young okra
salt as required
oil as required to fry okra
2 tablespoons oil to coat the okra pieces
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon red chili powder
2 teaspoons garam masala powder
To Make The Gravy For The Curry
4 medium sized fresh tomatoes
1 medium sized onion
1 cup water
salt as required
oil as required, don’t use the oil you used to fry okra
2 tablespoons ginger garlic paste
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon red chili powder
2 tablespoons coriander powder
2 teaspoons garam masala powder
1 teaspoon curry powder optional
¼ cup coconut milk or heavy cream (optional)
Step by step instructions
To Fry Lady Fingers For The Curry
Wash the okra. Dry each okra with a paper towel and keep aside for drying. Make sure the okra is completely dry before yo do anything with it.
Cut both ends of each okra. You can cut them even smaller if your okra is long in size. If using very small okras (which are the best), you just have to cut the ends. You can also slice them once lengthwise if you like.
Transfer the cut okra pieces to a large bowl, add the spices and 2 tablespoons of oil, mix well so all the okra get coated in spices and oil. (We add salt only at the end of the preparation for best results).
Let it sit there for about 10 minutes.
Heat oil in a pan and when the oil is hot, add the okra little by little to deep fry. Make sure you don’t overcrowd the pan. You can deep fry all the okra in different batches if needed.
While frying the okra, you will notice that the slimy liquid from okra is coming out, which is okay, you should just wait for it to evaporate and you get the nicely fried okra (with the slimy substance gone). This will take a few minutes, so make sure to keep the heat medium and adjust as need so the okras won’t get burnt.
Sprinkle salt towards the end of frying (each batch).
Transfer the fried okras to a bowl or plate (which can handle heat, don’t use plastic plates or bowls). You may also transfer them to an aluminium foil.
Now your okra is ready to be used for the curry. So let us go on to prepare the curry gravy for the dish.
To Make The Curry
Slice the onions finely, keep it aside.
Chop the tomatoes and keep it aside.
Heat oil in a pan and add the sliced onions and little salt.
Saute the onions until the onions are transparent or lightly browned.
Transfer the sauteed onions to a bowl and once it is cool, process it in the food processor to make the onion paste(don’t add water).
Add the chopped tomatoes to the same pan and saute for about 5 to 6 minutes or until the oil has started to separate from it.
Add the onion paste, ginger garlic paste and saute for another 2 minutes.
Add the water and bring the mixture to a boil.
Add all the spices and reduce the heat and cook the gravy for another 2 minutes. By this time, thegravy mixture would have nicely blended with all the spices.
Now the gravy for the vendakka curry (okra curry) is ready. If you want a creamy texture, add the coconut milk (thick) or heavy cream and stir in to combine with the curry.
Switch off the stove and add the fried okra to the gravy.
Mix everything well. Delicious okra/lady finger curry in onion tomato gravy with spices is ready to serve!
Below you can get the recipe for tomato okra curry in detail.
Okra Curry With Tomatoes – Vendakka Curry Kerala Style
Ingredients
- 2 cups young okra
- salt as required
- oil as required to fry okra
- 2 tablespoons oil to coat the okra pieces
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 2 teaspoons garam masala powder
To Make The Gravy For The Curry
- 4 medium sized fresh tomatoes
- 1 medium sized onion
- 1 cup water
- salt as required
- oil as required, don’t use the oil you used to fry okra
- 2 tablespoons ginger garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 2 tablespoons coriander powder
- 2 teaspoons garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon curry powder optional
- ¼ cup coconut milk or heavy cream (optional)
Instructions
To Fry Lady Fingers For The Curry
- Wash the okra. Dry each okra with a paper towel and keep aside for drying. Make sure the okra is completely dry before yo do anything with it.
- Cut both ends of each okra. You can cut them even smaller if your okra is long in size. If using very small okras (which are the best), you just have to cut the ends. You can also slice them once lengthwise if you like.
- Transfer the cut okra pieces to a large bowl, add the spices and 2 tablespoons of oil, mix well so all the okra get coated in spices and oil. (We add salt only at the end of the preparation for best results).
- Let it sit there for about 10 minutes.
- Heat oil in a pan and when the oil is hot, add the okra little by little to deep fry. Make sure you don’t overcrowd the pan. You can deep fry all the okra in different batches if needed.
- While frying the okra, you will notice that the slimy liquid from okra is coming out, which is okay, you should just wait for it to evaporate and you get the nicely fried okra (with the slimy substance gone). This will take a few minutes, so make sure to keep the heat medium and adjust as need so the okras won’t get burnt.
- Sprinkle salt towards the end of frying (each batch).
- Transfer the fried okras to a bowl or plate (which can handle heat, don’t use plastic plates or bowls). You may also transfer them to an aluminium foil.
- Now your okra is ready to be used for the curry. So let us go on to prepare the curry gravy for the dish.
To Make The Curry
- Slice the onions finely, keep it aside.
- Chop the tomatoes and keep it aside.
- Heat oil in a pan and add the sliced onions and little salt.
- Saute the onions until the onions are transparent or lightly browned.
- Transfer the sauteed onions to a bowl and once it is cool, process it in the food processor to make the onion paste(don’t add water).
- Add the chopped tomatoes to the same pan and saute for about 5 to 6 minutes or until the oil has started to separate from it.
- Add the onion paste, ginger garlic paste and saute for another 2 minutes.
- Add the water and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Add all the spices and reduce the heat and cook the gravy for another 2 minutes. By this time, thegravy mixture would have nicely blended with all the spices.
- Now the gravy for the vendakka curry (okra curry) is ready. If you want a creamy texture, add the coconut milk (thick) or heavy cream and stir in to combine with the curry.
- Switch off the stove and add the fried okra to the gravy. Mix everything well. Delicious okra/lady finger curry in onion tomato gravy with spices is ready to serve!
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