Okra

Pickles! That’s my solution for long-term storage. Pickled okra. Fresh okra will keep for a few days, but it’s really best within 2 or 3 days of picking. If it sits longer, it starts to get slimy and brown and then it’s just disgusting. If you’ve got a bounty of tomatoes at the same time, stew up a big pot of okra and tomatoes. Now you’ve got something you can freeze and use as a basis for vegetable soup or gumbo. Or to serve all by itself over rice as my family did for all the years I was growing up. Or add cubes of beef or pork or lamb to the thawed okra-tomato mixture and you’ve got a great stew. I’ve never had any luck freezing okra by itself – turns into a slimy mess. At least for me.