Cajun Baked Okra

Cajun Baked Okra is the perfect side dish for any meal! Packed with Cajun seasonings, crispy, & easy to make. Baked not fried! Weight Watchers friendly recipe-2 SmartPoints!

If you are from the south, or anywhere close, you probably have a deep love for fried okra.  Fried okra is a classic staple at any seafood or southern comfort restaurant.  Crunchy yet puffy little bites of goodness… like little pieces of popcorn.  So good!  I remember always being so happy when I mom would make fried okra at home as a kid.  Years ago I went to a restaurant in Texas and they had charred baked okra on the menu.  I had to try it!  Not fried, but crunchy and addictive!  My Cajun Baked Okra is a nod to one of my favorite childhood side dishes.  Packed with Cajun flavor and healthy!  This is a Weight Watcher friendly recipe and each serving 2 SmartPoints.

Ever since I tried okra that wasn’t fried, I’m hooked.  I thought okra was only good fried, but I was wrong.  Baked okra is delicious!  If you haven’t had okra, I recommend making this recipe… This recipe is no fuss and takes less than 30 minutes to make! It’s a great start to introducing okra into your pallet.  My husband is not from the South and LOVES IT!

Okra can sometimes be slimy, especially if you are not going to fry it.  The trick to making sure okra doesn’t get slimy is to toss it in lemon juice.   Also, I leave the end caps on the okra to bake them; this also helps with the slimy factor.  Don’t eat the caps though; they are not that good!  After the okra is cleaned, toss the okra in lemon juice, olive oil, and Cajun seasonings.

The Cajun seasonings I used were basically the same seasonings as I used for my Blackened Catfish.  If you don’t want that much spice, you can omit the cayenne pepper.  After the okra has been coated in the seasoning, bake in the oven at 450° for about 25 minutes and that’s it!!

This okra is the perfect side dish for any meal!  Packed with Cajun seasonings, crispy, and easy to make.  This is a great alternative to make if you love fried okra but don’t want to guilt.  I like to serve this with ketchup!

I hope you enjoy these bites of flavor!

Cajun Baked Okra

This okra is the perfect side dish for any meal!  Packed with Cajun seasonings, crispy, and easy to make.  

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 25 mins

Total Time 30 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Servings 2

Ingredients

  

• 1 Pound Okra
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• Juice of Half a Lemon
• ½ Tablespoon Salt
• ½ Tablespoon Pepper
• ⅛ Teaspoon Smoked Paprika
• ½ Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• ¼ Teaspoon Onion Powder
• ¼ Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper, (Omit to make less spicy)
• ¼ Teaspoon Cumin

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 450°.
• Rinse okra and pat dry.
• In small bowl, mix salt, pepper, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, and cumin.
• In zip lock bag, add okra, olive oil, lemon juice, and spices. Shake bag to coat okra with spices.
• Spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
• Lay okra on baking sheet in single layer.
• Roast in oven for 10 minutes.
• With a spatula, turn okra on other side and cook for another 15 minutes.

Notes

Nutrition is based on the Weight Watchers Freestyle Program guidelines. Nutrition calculated using Weight Watchers calculator.

NUTRITION: Makes 2- (4 SmartPoints Per Serving) CALORIES: 109 FAT: 7.3 SATURATED FAT: 1 CARBS: 10.1 FIBER: 5.6 SUGARS: 5.4 PROTEIN: 4.2

Looking for more Cajun Inspired Recipes?  Click here to find all the delicious-ness!

Helpful kitchen tools to make this recipe:

• Baking Sheet

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