An everyday vegetable dish, this time in the Gujarati style of western India, made without onions. Because of its viscosity, okra is never washed. Instead, it is wiped with a damp cloth and left for a while to air-dry before it is cut. This dish is generally eaten with legume dishes, other vegetables, yogurt relishes, pickles, and Indian breads.

Ingredients

　　3 tablespoons olive or canola oil

　　A generous pinch of ground asafetida

　　1/2 teaspoon whole brown or yellow mustard seeds

　　1 pound fresh okra (pick small, tender pods), top and tail removed and then cut crossways at 1/2-inch intervals

　　1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric

　　1 teaspoon salt

　　1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

　　1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

　　1/4–1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

　　Pour the oil into a frying pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the asafetida and mustard seeds. As soon as the mustard seeds begin to pop, a matter of seconds, add the okra. Turn heat to medium. Stir and cook for 3 minutes. Add the turmeric and salt and toss well. Turn heat to medium low. Stir and cook for 8–9 minutes or until the okra is lightly browned and almost cooked. Sprinkle in the cumin, coriander, and cayenne. Toss, turn heat to low, and cook another 2 minutes.

　　Excerpted from At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by Madhur Jaffrey. Copyright © 2010 by Random House. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Buy the full book from Amazon.