Here’s an easy-peasy recipe made with okra that you can pair up as a delicious side dish with your Indian flatbreads or a dal-rice or a sambar-rice at home. This is an easy to prepare spiced North Indian or Punjabi-style Bhindi Fry recipe, which is also gluten-free and vegan. With just your regular spices, onions, tomatoes and green chilies along with okra, you can prepare this simple yet lovely dish in no time.

About Bhindi Fry Recipe

While when you look at the name of this recipe, it appears as the okra pods or the other ingredients are being fried. But that is not the case here. The okra is sautéed with the remaining ingredients and not deep fried or shallow fried.

The word “fry” in the Indian lingo usually refers to the method of sautéing and hence the name of this recipe; where ‘Bhindi’ stands for Okra and ‘Fry’ implies the sautéed masala base.

If you are looking for an actual fried bhindi variant, where the okra pods are really fried, do check this super tasty recipe of crispy Kurkuri Bhindi.

In the vibrant kitchens of North India, where spices and flavors are expertly woven into everyday meals, the Bhindi Fry emerges as a beloved dish that transforms simple okra into a flavorful delight.

This recipe is a loved one as a side dish with chapatis or with dal at my home. The sabzi is a dry recipe with a base of onion, tomatoes and regular spices. Bhindi fry also makes for a good tiffin box lunch with roti.

In a hot pan, oil sizzles with thinly sliced onions, turning golden and caramelized, their sweetness creating a beautiful base for the Bhindi Fry. Next, the rest of the ingredients along with the okra and spices are added.

A blend of traditional North Indian spices like turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and garam masala powder balance the flavors in the dish.

As the bhindi fries to crispy perfection, a final touch of dried mango powder (amchur) and crushed dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi) is added, lending a tangy brightness and earthy notes that elevates the dish.

There is a difference between make of this Bhindi Fry and Bhindi Masala. Here, you cook everything together in one pan. The slightly caramelized taste of the onions and the tang of the tomatoes go very well with the few okra pieces that turn golden and crisp.

Points To Remember While Cooking Bhindi

You do not get slimy or mushy bhindi, if you rinse and wipe dry the okra very well. Before chopping, there should not be any moisture on the okra.

If the rinsed okra pods are not thoroughly dried, you will end up with a mushy and sticky okra preparation.

The sour ingredients in this recipe like tomatoes and dried mango powder also minimize the sliminess.

Served hot, Bhindi Fry is a versatile dish that pairs beautifully with warm roti or soft chapati or phulka or fluffy rice, or as a flavorful side to any Indian meal.

Each bite is a harmonious blend of textures and spices, capturing the essence of North Indian cuisine in its savory glory.

How to make Bhindi Fry

Preparation

1. Rinse 250 grams okra (bhindi) in water. Then, wipe them dry with a kitchen towel or just allow them to dry naturally on a plate.

rinsed and wiped okra for making bhindi fry.

2. Slice off the crown and base tip of each bhindi. Then, vertically slice them as shown in the picture below. The slices can range between 0.25 to 0.5 cm in thickness.

3. Slice 1 medium onion, chop 1 large tomato and slit 2 green chilies.

sliced onions, slit green chilies and chopped tomatoes for making bhindi fry.

Sauté Aromatics

4. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a shallow thick-bottomed frying pan. Add the sliced onions.

5. Sauté until the onions start turning light golden.

6. Now, add 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste and slit green chilies.

ginger-garlic paste and slit green chilies added to onions.

7. Sauté till the raw aroma of ginger-garlic goes away.

Sauté Tomatoes

8. Now, add the chopped tomatoes.

chopped tomatoes added to onion mixture.

9. Stir and mix well.

tomatoes stirred well in the onion mixture.

10. Add ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder, ¼ teaspoon red chili powder, ½ teaspoon coriander powder and ½ teaspoon cumin powder.

spice powders added to onion-tomato mixture.

11. Mix the spices with the onion-tomato mixture. Sauté until the tomatoes turn pulpy and you see oil releasing from the sides.

Make Bhindi Fry

12. Now, add the sliced okra.

sliced okra added to onion-tomato masala.

13. Season with salt.

14. Stir and mix very well.

15. Cover the pan with a tight fitting lid and cook Bhindi Fry on sim or low heat.

16. Cook on low heat until the chopped okra are tender and softened.

You will have to check after every 4 to 5 minutes so that the okra does not get too browned or burnt. Stir every time, when you check the dish.

If the okra starts turning too browned, sprinkle about 1 to 1½ tablespoons water all over. Stir, cover and continue to cook Bhindi Fry on low heat.

17. Here, after first 5 minutes, I added ½ teaspoon dried mango powder (amchur powder). Simply because I forgot to add it before. Stir and mix very well.

18. Once done, add ¼ teaspoon garam masala powder and ½ teaspoon crushed dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi). Mix very well.

garam masala powder and crushed kasuri methi added to bhindi fry.

19. Lastly, add 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves. Stir and mix.

chopped coriander leaves added to bhindi fry.

20. Serve Bhindi Fry hot or warm with chapati or as a side dish with dal-rice.

bhindi fry served in a white bowl with a side of dal rice.

This Bhindi Fry from the archives first published in July 2015 has been updated and republished on June 2024.

Bhindi Fry