Okra Beignets

Although most people think of beignets as the light doughnut-like pastry of the New Orleans French Quarter (they are in fact Louisiana’s official state doughnut) , there are also savory beignets made from deep fried balls of various vegetables.  Here we share a recipe for okra beignets adapted from one presented in the 1985 Bill Neal's Southern Cooking (ISBN 978-0807842553).  If you are not terribly fond of fried okra, you may want to give these a try, as the other ingredients tend to hide okra's gooiness.

2 cups okra, coarsely chopped
2/3 cup onion, minced
1/3 cup red bell pepper, minced
3 tablespoons flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup cooked rice
1 egg
½ teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1 tablespoon chevré
Oil for cooking

Toss okra with the onion, bell pepper, flour and salt.  Stir in rice.  Beat the egg with the hot pepper sauce and chevré until smooth.  Pour over the vegetable mixture and gently toss until will mixed.  Let sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.

While the batter is sitting, heat oil to 375° F.  Drop 1 tablespoon balls of the batter into the hot oil.  Let cook until golden brown on one side, about 5 minutes.  Turn and continue cooking the other side.  Remove from oil and drain on paper toweling.   Serve immediately.

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