Bhindi Masala is a popular and healthy Indian side dish made with bhindi, onion, tomatoes, Indian spices, and herbs. It is one of the easiest stir fry side dishes to make and is packed with a lot of health benefits for your lunch and dinner. The recipe I have shared here explains to you how to make a perfect bhindi masala without turning them slimy with simple step-by-step instructions along with a short video. This Bhindi masala is a flavorful vegetarian dish that tastes great with roti, paratha, or rice dishes such as white rice and basmati rice.
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What is Bhindi Masala?
The term Bhindi a Hindi word refers to okra also called ladies' finger in English and Masala is nothing but stir fry made with onion, tomatoes, and Indian spices. It is one of the popular side dishes common among Indian households, especially in North India. This okra masala is delicious and has a lot of health benefits, including it in your diet. And it is also a perfect vegan-friendly dish that pairs great with roti, chapati, or rice.
Ingredients
The ingredients required for this dish are minimal and they are as follows.
- Bhindi - Always choose tender green okra
- Cumin seeds - Delivers a unique aroma and taste
- Oil - Choose your favorite cooking oil and I have used canola oil here
- Ginger Garlic paste - Gives fresh aroma and flavor to the dish
- Onion, Tomatoes - It makes the base for this masala
- Chili, turmeric, coriander, Garam Masala powder - Gives the perfect spice and flavor to this masala
- Kasoori Methi - Adding it in the final stage gives an exotic taste to this bhindi masala
How to make Bhindi Masala?
Preparation of bhindi masala has three main steps and I have shared it with detailed step-by-step written and video instructions below.
- Stir-Frying Bhindi -First, wash all the bhindi in cold water and dry them completely. Now cut the veggie into 1½ inches in its size. Next in a pan with medium heat, pour oil, add all the chopped veggies, and stir fry them until it turns dark green. It may take 10 to 15 minutes to reach that consistency. At this stage, the okra will be completely nonsticky and mostly you will not see any sliminess. Remove the bhindis from the oil and keep it for later use.
- Preparation of Masala - To prepare the masala, pour oil into the pan, add cumin seeds, onion, and saute until it turns soft. Now add the tomatoes and allow them to turn mushy. Once they are mushy, add in the ginger-garlic paste, salt, chili, turmeric, coriander, and garam masala powder. Give them a good mix and add water. Allow the mixture to boil for 5 to 7 minutes. Now the onion tomato masala is ready for us to add the bhindi.
- Making Bhindi Masala - Once the onion-tomato masala is thick, add the stir-fried bhindis to it and give a gentle mix. Now close the pan with its lid and cook the mixture for 5 to 7 minutes on low heat. Finally, add Kasoori methi and give a quick mix. And now the flavorful Bhindi masala is ready for us to taste and enjoy.
Variations
- I have made this bhindi masala with slightly semi-thick gravy and you can also make it dry or in curry, form adjusting the water quantity
- I have used chopped onion and tomatoes to make masala and you can also use onion and tomato puree to make the curry thick
- You can also use coconut milk to enhance the taste and flavor of the dish
- I have added Kasoori methi at the end which gives a unique flavor and you can also skip it if you really don't like it
- You can also use fenugreek seeds while tempering the mustard seeds instead of kasoori methi leaves at the end
- You can also use potatoes along with ladies' fingers to make a different version of this bhindi masala
Tips
How to pick a good Bhindi?
Choosing the right bhindi is one of the important things to achieve a delicious dish out of it. So picking the tender and young bhindis is a key to achieving nonsticky, and fiberless hard veggies in your dish. So what do the tender and young bhindi look like? Don't worry it is not rocket science. Typically tender and young bhindis are dark green in color and the whole veggie feels soft when you touch it with your hands.
Most importantly, the tip of the veggie can be easily broken with your fingers. I have also shown it in the video for more clarity. While the matured one feels hard from the outside and you cannot break the tip easily. And it also delivers a fibery thread-like veggie when cooked that is not palatable.
Another important fact is always to make sure to avoid fat or bulgy, shrank, and bruised bhindi to make perfect bhindi recipes.
How to cook Bhindi?
Bhindi is naturally a slimy vegetable that releases its stickiness when it is not properly cooked. Most of us also do not like that greasy substance in our dish as well. So to get rid of that slippery oily substance, it is important to wash the okra in water and air or towel dry them completely before cutting them into pieces.
The second important fact is that always try to cut the veggie into 1 to 1½ inches in its size. Cutting them into small pieces will make them sticky too.
And finally, stir fry the bhindi in a generous amount of oil until it turns to dark green color in medium heat. This step helps the veggie to remove all that gooey substance from it.
More Tips
- Making the masala with tender bhindi helps to achieve good taste in the dish and they would be naturally less slimy
- Always wash the bhindi and towel or air dry them before using them in your recipes. If the bhindis are cut immediately then they would turn too slimy
- Make sure to cut the bhindi from 1 to 1½ inches in size which helps to avoid them turning sticky
- It is important to stir fry the bhindis with oil which helps it to avoid sticking to the pan
- Always make sure to stir fry the bhindi in medium heat until it turns dark green in color to get the best flavor out of it and it helps in achieving a non-sticky veggie as well.
Benefits of Bhindi
Bhindi is a nutrient-packed veggie that has a lot of health benefits when included in our diet. They are,
- Bhindis are rich in antioxidants that help to decrease heart risks
- Helps in brain development
- It may also help to control blood sugar levels
- Excellent source of folate for pregnant women (source: (WebMD)
Storage Suggestions
This bhindi masala tastes great when served fresh and the leftovers stay fresh for a day in the refrigerator. Always make sure to reheat only the portion you would like to enjoy for the best results. You can also make the onion tomato masala ahead in bulk and store it in freezer-friendly bags in the freezer for up to 2 months. You can just stir-fry the okras and mix them with masala for a quick meal.
Serving Suggestions
Bhindi masala tastes great with white rice, basmati rice, jeera rice, pulao, and similar other rice dishes. It also tastes delicious with naan, roti, chapati, or paratha.
You could also find similar recipes below and more at Veg Curries.
More Masala recipes:
To make your life easy, I have also created a collection of Indian Vegetarian Lunch Recipes in one place and I believe it will help you to plan your meal at home. Take a peek!
Bhindi Masala Recipe video
I have also shared a video of the Bhindi masala recipe below and I hope it will help you to make a perfect, tasty, and nonsticky side dish at home. For a quick reference, you could also find this recipe in story format.
📖 Recipe
Bhindi Masala
Ingredients
- 1¼ lb Bhindi, Okra
- 1 Onion, finely chopped
- 1 Tomato, finely chopped
- 1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
- 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
- ¼ cup Oil, additional 1 tsp for stir frying
- 1 tsp Chili Powder
- 1 tsp Coriander Powder
- 1 tsp Garam Masala Powder
- 1 tsp Kasoori Methi
- 1 cup Water
- Salt, as needed
Instructions
To stir fry Bhindi
- First, rinse the bhindi in water and dry them with clean tissue paper or cotton cloth. Now cut and discard both the ends of the bhindi and cut the remaining into medium size pieces. Repeat the same process for all the okras
- Now in a pan with medium heat, pour oil and saute the bindi for 10 minutes or until it turns dark green color(at this stage you will not see any stickiness in the vegetable)
- Now remove the bhindi from the pan and reserve it for later use
To prepare Bhindi Masala
- In the same pan, pour extra oil and add cumin seeds, and onions. Saute until it turns soft
- Now add the tomatoes and saute until they turn mushy
- Add salt, chili, turmeric, coriander, garam masala powder, ginger garlic paste, and give a good mix
- Now add 1 cup of water and allow the mixture to cook for 5 to 7 minutes
- Add the bhindis and give a good stir
- Now close the pan with the lid and cook the bhindi mixture for about 5 to 10 minutes in low heat
- Open the pan and add kasoori methi. Give a quick mix and the delicious bhindi masala is ready to serve
To Serve
- Serve this tasty Bhindi Masala with jeera rice, roti, chapati, naan, or other rice dishes
Video
Notes
- Making the masala with tender bhindi helps to achieve good taste to the dish and they would be naturally less slimy
- Always wash the bhindi and towel or air dry them before using them in your recipes. If the bhindis are cut immediately then they would turn too slimy
- Make sure to cut the bhindi from 1 to 1½ inches in its size which helps to avoid them turning slimy
- It is important to stir fry the bhindis with oil which helps it to avoid sticking to the pan
- Always make sure to stir fry the bhindi in medium heat until it turns dark green in color to get the best flavor out of it
- Bhindi masala is a vegan-friendly, gluten free and nut free dish that can be served for lunch or dinner along with rice, roti, or chapati
Nutrition
FAQ
Bhindi Masala is a popular Indian side dish made with okras, onions, tomatoes, Indian spices, and herbs. It is typically served as a side dish with rice, pulao, roti, or chapati. It is also a vegan-friendly, and gluten-free dish with a lot of health benefits.
Young and tender lady's fingers that are light to dark in green color work best for cooking. They are usually soft from the outside and also we can break the tip of the veggie with our fingers.
The bhindi masala turns too sticky or slimy if the veggies are not stir-fried properly before adding to the onion tomato masala. So always make sure to saute them until all the moisture is removed from the veggie.
Bhindi may burn or turns black if it is sauteed in high heat. Always saute the bhindi low medium heat to avoid burning.
Sauteing the bhindis with a generous amount of oil in low medium heat helps to avoid them sticking to the pan.
You should always wash the bhindi before cutting them into slices. Most importantly, make sure to dry them completely before cutting into the piece. And this helps to avoid them turning more sticky.
I really hope you enjoyed the recipe that I have shared here and I would love to hear from you about how it turned out for you. Please let me know.
If you have any other questions, feel free to post them in the comment section below and I will try to get back to you as soon as possible.
Happy Cooking!
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