Monday, September 19, 2011

Roasted Potato & Okra Salad

Posted by Erin Wilburn / 36 comments » / csa, Nashville, sides, vegetarian

As excited as I am about the return of all things fall, including pumpkin purchasing, pumpkin eating, cooler temperatures, bright tights, warm scarves, changing leaves, windows open, and fall veggies, that doesn’t mean I’m not grasping tightly to the last bits of summer produce.

We were invited over to our friends’ house for a cookout, and of course my first question was “What should I bring?”.  The friends are owners of a really awesome meat & 3 lunch spot here in town.  (Iron Porkchop, if you haven’t been, GO!  Delicious, fast, affordable!  Get Banana Pudding for dessert.  Trust me.)  I knew he was gonna throw down on the meat, and he requested we bring a side.  I know they aren’t picky eaters, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to use the okra I recently scored at work.

This was an incredibly simple salad to prepare.  It takes a little bit of time (inactive time roasting in the oven), but minimal effort.  The fresh rosemary gave it a burst of herbal flavor.  The lemon juice added hint of tang.  As you know I love to roast any vegetable; that’s one of my favorite ways to eat potatoes, and okra as well.  If you avoid okra because of the potential for “slime”, then you should really consider this recipe, or any other one that involves roasting it.  Everyone really enjoyed this salad, and commented on how it was really different.  I felt like I had one foot in the door of summer, and one foot in the door of fall.  Foods like this make me on happy gal.

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Roasted Potato & Okra Salad

Ingredients:

2 lb small potatoes such as fingerling, red, or yellow-fleshed
1 large bunch scallions, halved lengthwise and roughly chopped
2 large fresh rosemary sprigs, plus 1/2 teaspoon chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
2 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 lb small (2- to 3-inch) okra, heads removed
1 cup fresh corn (from 1 to 2 ears, I used a combo of frozen kernels plus 1 ear of corn)
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot

Directions:

Roast potatoes and okra:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 450°F.

Halve potatoes lengthwise and toss with scallion pieces, rosemary sprigs, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Spread potato mixture in a large roasting pan and roast, stirring once, 20 minutes. Stir potatoes and add okra to pan, tossing to coat. Continue to roast until okra and potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes more.

Cook corn while potatoes roast:
Cook corn in 1 quart of salted boiling water for 3 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Make dressing and assemble salad:
Whisk together lemon juice, shallot, chopped rosemary, and remaining 2 tablespoons oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl until combined. Discard rosemary sprigs, then add hot potatoes and okra to dressing along with beans, corn, and salt to taste, tossing to combine. Serve hot or warm.

from TheKitchenSink, who originally adapted from Gourmet