Southern Corn and Okra Stew
This hearty vegetarian okra stew is gumbo-inspired and built on a real roux. Black-eyed peas, fire-roasted corn, and brown rice—ready in under an hour.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion
- 4 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt and freshly ground black pepper, each
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 red or yellow bell pepper, diced
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 1 cup frozen corn kernels, preferably fire-roasted
- 1 can black-eyed peas, drained
- 8 cups vegetable broth
- 12 ounce bag, frozen cut okra
- 2 cups cooked brown rice
- 2 cups chopped spinach
- 1/3 cup chopped parsley
- 1/2 lemon juiced
Instructions
- In a dutch oven or large soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. Cook, stirring often, for 7-8 minutes until the roux has become golden in color and no more visible flour remains.
- Add the onion and cook another 8 minutes or so, until the onion has softened. Add in the garlic, spices, bay leaves, celery and bell pepper. Cook another 8 minutes or so, stirring often, until the vegetables have started to softened.
- Stir in the corn, black-eyed peas, broth, okra, and cooked brown rice. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cook another 5 minutes, until the stew starts to thicken and the okra and corn have cooked through.
- Remove from heat and stir in the spinach, parsley and lemon. The spinach should wilt in the heat. Season to taste, add salt/pepper as needed, and remove the bay leaves. I like serving with a few dashes of hot sauce!
Nutrition
Serving: 1servingCalories: 294kcalCarbohydrates: 45gProtein: 8gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gSodium: 1331mgPotassium: 548mgFiber: 8gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 3099IUVitamin C: 48mgCalcium: 93mgIron: 3mg