Somewhat Culinary

One of my students recently shared a generous portion of her homemade soup. It was a hearty beef-and-vegetable mix that would have been quite satisfying--except that the mix also included okra, so it was not only satisfying; it was phenomenal. (The okra was homegrown, I might add!)

This was the first time I had ever had okra in soup. In fact, it has been quite some time since I had it at all. (My Mom has coated slices of the fresh vegetable in egg and cornmeal and fried with bacon--beyond phenomenal, that, but of course, when you add bacon, you bring any food up to a whole new level!) I got into a bit of an okra frenzy, and have been buying it frozen so I can have a wee bit in soup or in scrambled eggs. Tasty stuff indeed, although texture-oriented eaters stand forewarned--it has been called "slimy."