Doug Smith: Grilled Okra

OKRA

story and recipe by Doug Smith

I was once told, “Keep it simple and let the food shine.” This statement had me rethinking everything I had been taught about cooking, such as to be a great cook you need to have certain skills, a cabinet full of special spices, and maybe a large assortment of expensive kitchen gadgets. But that’s not true at all. All you need is a few ingredients that you like along with two or three basic seasonings, and don’t forget to throw in a little love. Now you have all you need to prepare a delicious meal. As I gathered my thoughts for this month’s article, thinking about all the inspiring teachers and mentors that poured their time and energy into helping me be better than even I could have imagined, lots of names kept coming to mind. People like Chef John that showed me how to keep things simple, Mr. Yarborough that introduced me to woodworking and how you can look at a piece of wood, feel the grain and make something special that can withstand the test of time. I also think of Mrs. Carrol. To be honest, she pushed me hard, really hard, at times to tears. See what most people don’t know is I was one of those kids that just struggled in school so much so that I was finally tested and diagnosed with dyslexia. This somehow was good news because now I had an excuse for all my bad grades. I say excuse because for a time I wore this like a badge of honor. I could tell you all the things I couldn’t do and why. See it wasn’t my fault. I had a learning disability. This is when I was put in Mrs. Carrol’s class for the last hour of the day to help me get my homework done. She was hard on me. She expected me to do my work and doing it halfway was not an option. She wouldn’t let me use this excuse anymore. I was told over and over “You can do this. We will come up with some tools you can use for the rest of your life. We will work together to identify your strengths then work on overcoming your weaknesses.” This was life-changing for me. Finally, I understood. I could do my school work. Maybe not a straight-A student but that’s okay, I can do it. Over time this weakness became more of an inconvenience than anything. Don’t get me wrong, I still struggle to this day. I read a little slower, always asking Jackie, my English teacher wife, or even Siri, how to spell this word or that word. So not that long ago it would have been unthinkable to write a letter or short note to someone in fear that a word may be misspelled or a sentence was incomplete. Fast forward to today where monthly I’m blessed to write this food-related article and have overcome so many obstacles. Thank you, Mrs. Carrol, and all the passionate teaches and mentors that poured their time into me and all the others just like me. Get more from Doug Smith by following him on Facebook and Instagram at "Doug the Food Guy".

GRILLED OKRA

Ingredients:

- Fresh okra - Olive oil - Kosher or sea salt - Cracked black pepper

Method:

1. Heat grill to medium-high heat. 2. Wash and trim the okra on both ends and toss it with olive oil and spices. Slice lengthwise if desired. 3. Grill the okra until tender and browned, turning frequently, for 8 to 10 minutes.