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chinese okra

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Seafood Vegetarian

Amazing Curry Jingi (Chinese Okra).

Leave a Comment on Amazing Curry Jingi (Chinese Okra).

Yet another dish I disliked as a lil fella growing up on the islands, but adore as an adult. Served with hot Sada roti and a few slices of avocado (zabouca) and some Mango Kuchela on the side and Uncle Chris is in culinary heaven.

You’ll Need…

2 lbs Jingi (Chinese Okra)
1/4 lbs salted Cod (prepared)
1/2 teaspoon salt (adjust)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
6 cherry tomatoes
1 1/2 tablespoon curry powder
6 cloves garlic (smashed)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds (geera)
3 medium potato (1/4s)
2 cups water
2 tablespoon Coconut Cream

Notes! If you wanted to do this curry dish fully vegan, simply leave out the salted Cod at the start. I used salted cod, but you may use any dried salted fish you prefer. Watch the video below to learn how I ‘prepared” the salted fish, and while I used boned (means the bones were removed) salted Cod, I still kept an eye out for any bones (to be removed and discarded). I used cherry tomatoes (or were they grape tomatoes?) but any tomato will work.

Using a sharp pairing knife or potato peeler, remove the outer skin off the Jingi and discard, cut into 1 inch cubes and rinse with cool water. Drain and set aside. You may want to prep your other ingredients at this time as well.

Add the oil to your pot on a medium flame, then add the prepared salted cod pieces to the pan, turn the heat to low and cook for 3 minutes. This step will flavor the oil. After which, remove and set aside.

In the same pot on a low flame (try to not remove the oil we started with – add a bit more if needed), add the garlic and stir well. 30 seconds later add the cumin seeds and cook for another minute. Then add the Caribbean Green Seasoning and stir well.

It’s now time to add your fav curry powder (heat still on low) and cook until fragrant. About 3 minutes. During this time add the black pepper.

Now turn the heat to medium and add the cubed pieces of Jingi and stir to coat with the curry base we created. Feel free to add a splash of water if you find that it’s starting to stick at the bottom of the pot.

It’s now time to add the pieces of potato and stir again. Top with the tomato, salt (see my tip in the video) and water and with the lid on, bring to a boil.

Once you have a good boil going, reduce to a simmer, add the coconut cream and cover the pot slightly ajar. Cook for 20-25 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

With everything tender and falling apart, it’s time to ad back the pre-cooked salted Cod to the pot and stir well. Taste and adjust the salt and crank up the heat should you find that it’s too runny for your liking (keeping in mind that it will thicken as it cool).

Such a simple, yet wickedly tasty dish!

Vegetarian

Curry Jingi (Chinese Okra) A Tasty Vegetarian Dish.

4 Comments on Curry Jingi (Chinese Okra) A Tasty Vegetarian Dish.

As a young fella on the islands I knew this vegetable as the one our mom would sometimes use to scrub blackened pots with and to be quite honest, I was never a fan of it. As we’ve discussed before, that lack of appreciation quickly went away as I grew older. When dried the jingi or Chinese okra is commonly known as a luffa and used all over the world as a body scrubber, but our mom had one use for it.. scrubbing pots.

When still green (not fully mature to it’s fibrous state) the jingi is a lovely vegetable, with a mellow sort of flavor and works well as a curry.

You’ll Need…

2 lbs jingi (Chinese okra)
1 small onion (diced)
3 cloves garlic (crushed)
2 tablespoon veg oil
1 heaping tablespoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
pinch black pepper
2 potatoes (cubed)
1 tablespoon chopped shado beni (or 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro)
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper
1 cup water + 3 tablespoon

Note: Shado Beni (chadon beni) will also be called culantro and can be found at West Indian, Latin and Asian food stores.

 Wash, peel and cube the jingi into 3/4 inch pieces (make sure the jingi is NOT fully mature so you don’t have to discard the inner (fluffy with seeds) parts. I used everything.

Heat the oil in a deep sauce pan on medium heat, then toss in half the diced onion and garlic, turn the heat down to low and allow the flavors to build slowly. After 3 minutes, add the curry powder (heat still on low) and allow it to toast for about 2 minutes. The spices which make up the curry will bloom at this point. Pour in the 3 tablespoons of water as well as the diced scotch bonnet pepper and allow to cook for about 3 minutes. This will now take the rawness out of the curry. It will go grainy and start to clump – that is natural.

Now turn the heat up to burn off any remaining liquid and add the cubed jingi and stir well so everything gets coated in the curry base. Now top with the black pepper, salt, chopped shado beni and add the diced potato. The final step is to add the 1 cup of water and bring to a boil.

Turn the heat down and allow to simmer until everything is tender (lid on). It will take about 25 minutes to fully cook. The goal is to have the potato tender to the point where it will help thicken the overall dish. Taste for salt and adjust to your liking. If you find that it’s still a bit runny, you can turn the heat up and burn off any excess liquid.

This is a lovely vegetarian dish which is great with rice and/or sada roti and a great way to use a very underused vegetable. If you’re not sure where to get the jingi (Chinese okra), check out your local Asian or West Indian market.

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