Kacang Bendi (Okra)

Okra which is also known as lady's fingers or kacang bendi with its botanical name of Abelmoschus esculentus is a vegetable that can be cooked in many ways and is a popular addition in curries locally.

There are two varieties that I plant at the farm: the green okra and the red okra.  The skin of the red okra turns to light green when it is cooked so you wouldn't know that it had red skin.  I planted this plant from seeds and it takes about 3-5 days to germinate.  From seedlings to maturity when it starts to flower takes about 60 days.

A healthy plant grows to look like a shrub with beautiful yellow flowers with a purple center.  The leaves are also a beautiful shape.  At the farm, I have planted this both in the outside ground as well as in a container.  As with many plants, it requires a soil mixture that moistens well as well as provide for good drainage.  I find that a soil mixture which also contains some sand as well as organic matter and low level of clay matter works well. 

Since it can be planted in containers, for home gardeners, you can plant this in large pots and will be a beautiful addition to your home landscape.  Do not let the soil to dry out as it does not do well when the soil is left to dry to days so check the moisture of the soil to water.  I find that it needs at least 8 hours of sun so if you plan to plant it at home, either a landed property or apartment, as long as it gets this amount of sunshine, it can do well,  It also can be planted in direct sunlight - in fact it does best in full sunshine during the day.  The plant can grow up to 2m tall but the height growth can be controlled by pinching off the tip of the plant to encourage it to "bush-out".

Once the flower blooms, it takes about 2-3 days before the "fruit" begins to form.  From then, the bean matures within 3-4 days.  The bean is best eaten when the tip of the fruit is firm and easy to break off.  If the tip just bends or is difficult to break off, this means that the bean will be hard and results in a stringy bean when cooked.  That is why, often, you will see people testing the tip of the bean when they are selecting the bean for purchase.

Okra is a popular health food due to its high fiber, citamin C, and folate  content. Okra is also known for being high in antioxidants. Okra is also a good source of calcium and potassium.

In Malaysia, the beans are cooked in several ways: it can be blanched and eaten with sambal belacan, deep fried with a tempura batter, it can be sliced and cooked with either chillies or soy sauce, stuffed with fish "cake" and cooked in hot water, or in curry or dalca dishes.