Okra stew with tomato sauce
Okra stew with tomato sauce is not missing from the recipe of monks kitchen, especially in summer when there are fresh okra and fresh tomatoes in abundance. A nutritious dish, ideal for those who are fasting or those who follow a vegetarian diet. Try this simple monastic recipe from Mount Athos and accompany your meal with a slice of bread from Mount Athos.
We remove the stalks carefully, so they don't pierce and expel their fluids liquids.
We wash them and spread them on a tray.
We sprinkle them with vinegar and salt them with coarse salt.
We leave them in the sun for about 3-4 hours.
Then, we rinse them and they are ready for cooking.
In the meantime, we have cut the onion into long slices.
We sauté it with a little salt in the pan.
We add the chopped garlic and the tomato (which we have passed through the grater).
We add the parsley, okra and salt.
We stir once and bring to a boil over medium heat.
Towards the end, we add some vinegar and ground pepper.
We boil them covered.
We make sure they stay with the oil and don't melt with constant stirring.
We shake the pan here and there so that they don't stick at the bottom of the pan.
If they need water then we add boiled water.
If our okra is fresh, then we do not do this pre-treatment. Fry them in a pan with enough oil and when they wilt, remove them with a slotted spoon. Then they are ready to cook.
We don't use a pot because the ones at the bottom melt and the others stay raw.
