Okra
Okra is one of the low fat foods with unique nutrients and phytochemical profiles and is particularly rich in dietary fiber, potassium, magnesium, manganese, vitamin C, folate, B1, B6, and vitamin K as well as bioactive components, such as flavonoids, especially quercetin and phytosterols.
Okra
B.R. SHARMA, in Genetic Improvement of Vegetable Crops, 1993
Publisher Summary
Okra—also known as lady's-fingers, gumbo, or bhindi—is the most important vegetable crop of the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. It belongs to the genus Abelmoschus and family Malvaceae. Okra is a multipurpose crop valued for its tender and delicious pods. In West Africa, leaves, buds, and flowers of okra are also consumed. The dried seeds provide oil, protein, vegetable curd, and a coffee additive or substitute. Okra dry seeds contain 18–20% oil and 20–23% crude protein. Foliage can be used for biomass, and the dried stems serve as a source of paper pulp or fuel. To a limited extent, okra is used in canned, dehydrated, or frozen forms. It has an average nutritive value of 3.21, which is higher than tomato, eggplant, and most cucurbits except bitter gourd. The cultivation of okra extends throughout the tropics and warmer parts of temperate Asia. It is commercially grown in India, Turkey, Iran, West Africa, Yugoslavia, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Pakistan, West Bengal, Burma, Japan, Malaysia, Brazil, Ghana, Ethiopia, Cyprus, and the southern USA. This chapter provides an overview of cytology, genetics, germplasm resources, and reproductive biology of okra. The chapter focuses on the breeding objectives and breeding methods of okra. It also discusses the results of the application of biotechnology in the okra breeding along with the future prospects in the okra breeding.
Nutrient profile, bioactive components, and functional properties of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench)
Sa’eed Halilu Bawa, Neela Badrie, in Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs, 2016
Abstract
Okra, Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench (syn, Hibiscus esculentus L.), is an important vegetable crop widely grown in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions of the world. The fruits or pods containing seeds are harvested when immature and are eaten as vegetables. This review focuses on the nutrient profile, bioactive components and their health effects, functional properties of okra, and identifies some regional okra food dishes. Okra is a very good source of dietary fiber, magnesium, manganese, potassium, vitamin K, vitamin C, folate, B1, and B6. Studies have indicated that okra is rich in bioactive components, such as flavonoids, especially quercetin and phytosterols. The okra seed oil is rich in unsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic acid, which is essential for human nutrition. Okra has beneficial health benefits on diabetes and some cancers. Okra mucilage from the immature pods was found to be suitable for industrial and medicinal applications.
Potential Use of Okra Seed (Abelmoschus esculentus Moench) Flour for Food Fortification and Effects of Processing
Oluyemisi Elizabeth Adelakun, Olusegun James Oyelade, in Flour and Breads and their Fortification in Health and Disease Prevention, 2011
Conclusion
Okra flour has huge potential to be used to enrich foods in order to provide adequate nutrients for individuals for whom daily nutritional needs are not being met. Based on the nutrient profile of okra, including the amino profile and the effect of processing on this, human consumption of okra flour can be promoted because of its positive health effects. However, considerable effort needs to be directed at addressing associated technological issues regarding effective utilization of the food product in food fortification, including the following:
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- The constituent gossypol or gossypol-like compounds and cyclopropenoid fatty acids in the oil
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- The constraint of dehulling to produce high-quality okra products for effective utilization in food fortification programs
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- Studies on the physicochemical properties of okra products to provide a suitable benchmark for the development of functional okra processing equipment
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- Determination of the effect of variety and agronomical traits on nutritional and physicochemical parameters of all known okra lines to present okra to wider population groups as a vital food crop.
Chemical and Antioxidant Properties of Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus Moench) Seed
Oluyemisi Elizabeth Adelakun, Olusegun James Oyelade, in Nuts and Seeds in Health and Disease Prevention, 2011
Present-Day Cultivation and Usage
Okra is presently grown in large quantities in different parts of Nigeria and other West African countries because of the favorable climatic conditions. Okra, which is specially valued for its tender and delicious fruits, has been reported to have an average nutritive value of 3.21, which is higher than that of tomato, eggplant, and most cucurbits except bitter gourd (Sahoo & Srivastava, 2002). Okra fruit is commonly processed into soups and stews. The process involves slicing, drying, and grinding, and the resulting material can then be mixed with other ingredients to make soup. In addition to its use in stews, okra can be used in the processing of other food items, such as candies, salad dressings, and cheese spreads. Apart from its food usage, the tree and pods have a number of additional economic benefits. The tree can be used to make rope and paper, while the pod (fruits) can be used, in extract form, as a fat substitute in brownies.
Nutritionally, the richest part of the okra plant is the seed. Although the oil of the okra seed after processing is edible, and the residual meal following oil extraction is significantly rich in protein, the seed is not traditionally used for either oil or protein, but rather for seedling and regeneration purposes. This probably explains why there are only fragmentary accounts of the use of okra seed as a food (Karakoltsidis & Constantinides, 1975). However, large quantities of seeds are discarded as unfit for seedling purposes. The seeds of mature okra pods, sometimes used as poultry feed, are also consumed after roasting, and as a coffee substitute. The volatile compounds in the coat of okra seeds, which can be released by simply rubbing the seeds, have been reported to have biological activity, and some of these compounds, including farnesol derivatives and aliphatic esters, seem to support the hypothesis of their role in defense against seed-eating insects (Camcium et al., 1998). By-products of okra seed have also been found to have industrial usage. Biodiesel was recently derived from okra (Hibiscus esculentus) seed oil, by methanol-induced trans-esterification using an alkali catalyst. It was concluded that okra seed oil is an acceptable feedstock for biodiesel production (Anwar et al., 2010).
Canning of vegetables
1.14 Okra
Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus, also called Hibiscus esculentus), also known as ladies' fingers, bhindi, bamia, or gumbo, is a flowering plant valued for its edible green seed pods (Figure 1.15). Good hygiene must be maintained at all times to pack okra of good quality. Cutting knives, pans, tanks, and so on must be kept free from conditions that tend to take iron into solution, as iron darkens okra, and these utensils should be made from noncorrosive metal. Water high in iron also contributes to this discolouration. Fermenting and decaying juices produce acidity, which in turn dissolves traces of iron. Cutters should be blown with steam every 2 h. If this is not done, a black discolouration of the cut surface of the okra is likely to occur.
Figure 1.15. Ladies Finger, Okra–
The okra should be handled quickly from the fields to the soaking tanks. Do not allow it to lie around in the fields or at the cannery. Tough pods of okra should be picked out and discarded.
There are two methods of preparing okra; it is either canned fresh or soaked in brine for a period of time.
Fresh Okra. If packed fresh, it is blanched in boiling water 2 min, followed by a spray of cold water to cool it. It is then passed through a cutter to cut into pieces of the proper length and immediately placed in cans and covered with boiling hot 2% brine.
Soaked Okra. If the okra is to be soaked, the stem is removed and the okra thoroughly washed. It is then placed in 2% brine. The soaking period is about 18 h; this varies somewhat according to the size of the okra. The okra is removed from the soaking tanks, blanched in boiling water 2–3 min, sprayed with cold water, and immediately put through the cutter, unless it is to be canned whole.
Fill and Exhaust. Fill the cans full, cover with 2% boiling hot brine, exhaust for at least 4 min in steam for all cans smaller than No. 10 size. No. 10 cans should be exhausted 8–10 min.
Citric acid (400–1000 ppm) treatment of okra to control an iron induced is commonly employed.
Process Times and Temperatures in Still Retorts. These processes give good guidelines for processing, but should always be verified by a competent thermal process authority for individual products and recipes. The maximum fill weights listed for some of the products may not be suitable for all operations. It is always recommended that heat penetration tests are done to verify the safety of the processing parameters. If the fill weight critical control factor is exceeded, then this constitutes a processing deviation and must be assessed by a competent thermal processing authority.
The minimum initial temperature stated is the average temperature of the contents of the coldest can in the retort at the time that the steam is turned on for the start of the process. The can sizes are all in Imperial units. See Appendix Table 9 for the conversion of Imperial to metric can sizes (Table 1.23).
Table 1.23. Okra in brine
| Can size | Maximum fill weight | Minimum initial temperature | Minutes at retort temperature | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| oz. | g | °F | °C | 116 °C (240 °F) | 118 °C (245 °F) | 121 °C (250 °F) | |
| 211 × 400 | 6.5 | 184 | 70 | 21 | 34 | 27 | 22 |
| 303 × 406 | 10.1 | 286 | 140 | 60 | 29 | 22 | 18 |
| 307 × 409 | 12.3 | 349 | |||||
| 211 × 304 | 6.9 | 196 | 70 | 21 | 42 | 34 | 29 |
| 303 × 406 | 10.7 | 303 | 140 | 60 | 35 | 28 | 23 |
| 307 × 409 | 13.0 | 369 | |||||
| 401 × 411 | 18.0 | 510 | 70 140 | 21 60 | 45 38 | 36 30 | 31 26 |
| 401 × 411 | 20.0 | 567 | 70 140 | 21 60 | 56 45 | 47 36 | 40 30 |
| 603 × 700 | 68.0 | 1928 | 70 140 | 21 60 | 54 47 | 46 39 | 40 34 |
Order Lepidoptera—Caterpillars, Moths and Butterflies
John L. Capinera, in Handbook of Vegetable Pests, 2001
Host Plants.
Okra caterpillar feeds primarily on plants in the family Malvaceae. Okra is the only vegetable crop affected, but its caterpillar also feeds on such ornamental or weedy plants as rose-of-sharon, Hibiscus syriacus; swamp rose, Hibiscus moscheutos; cotton rose, Hibiscus mutilabilis; chinese mallow, Hibiscus sinensis; roselle, Hibiscus sabdariffa; flour-of-an-hour, Hibiscus trionum; velvet leaf, Abutilon theophrasti; flowering maple, Abutilon striatum; hollyhock, Althaea rosea; and round-leaved mallow, Malva rotundifolia. It also can be found on cotton, and though it is not generally thought to be a common pest of this crop, it very closely resembles cotton leafworm, Alabama argillacea (Hübner), so it may be misidentified and its abundance underestimated (Creighton, 1936). Okra caterpillar is also reported to feed on Peperomia sp., family Piperaceae.
Vegetable Production
Ambayeba Muimba-Kankolongo, in Food Crop Production by Smallholder Farmers in Southern Africa, 2018
11.3.1 Origin and Geographic Distribution
Okra originated from the Abyssinian center, an area that includes Ethiopia, a portion of Eritrea, and the eastern, higher part of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. The crop was probably taken into Egypt by Moslems from the East who conquered Egypt in the seventh century. It was then taken from Ethiopia to Arabia across the narrow Red Sea or the narrower strait at its southern end. From Arabia okra spread over North Africa, completely around the Mediterranean, and eastward. Okra is currently grown around the world, especially in the United States and in the humid climates in Africa as well as in Sri Lanka in Asia. In Africa, the crop is cultivated in Kenya, Nigeria, Sudan, Gabon, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Cape Verde, and Chad. It is also grown in the Southern Africa region such as in Angola, DR Congo, Malawi, Tanzania, and Zambia but often not on a very large scale.
ALOE, CHIA, FLAXSEED, OKRA, PSYLLIUM SEED, QUINCE SEED, AND TAMARIND GUMS
JAMES N. BEMILLER, ... CHYI-CHENG CHEN, in Industrial Gums (Third Edition), 1993
Source
Okra, Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench (Hibiscus esculentus L.), family Malvaceae, is cultivated for its immature pods, which contain a gum that makes a thick, slimy mucilage and which are used to thicken soups and stews and as a vegetable.
The plant, a native of Africa, also called gumbo in the United States, bhindi in India, and bamia in Arabic countries, is grown in essentially all warm climates. It is an annual plant that grows to a height of 2–8 ft (0.6–2.4 m). The many-ribbed fruit pods are picked for cooking, canning, and freezing when they are young and tender, 2–4 in (5–10 cm) in length.
There appears to be a larger number of cultivars of different gum contents, different ones being used in different geographical areas because of preferences for the degree of mucilagenous character of local cuisine.70 In West Africa, okra leaves are also consumed and the stem is used for fiber and rope.70 Both fresh and dried fruits are used.
Because okra gum is obtained from an edible material, okra itself is used as a flavoring material and bodying agent in foodstuffs, and okra gum has some unique properties; the use of okra gum in foods and pharmaceuticals warrants further consideration.
VEGETABLES OF TEMPERATE CLIMATES | Stem and Other Vegetables
R. Fordham, P. Hadley, in Encyclopedia of Food Sciences and Nutrition (Second Edition), 2003
Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus), Family Malvaceae
Okra was formerly classified as Hibiscus esculentus. Its center of origin was most likely West Africa but transfer to parts of India and South-east Asia occurred early on in the crop's development. It is a traditional vegetable of many tropical and subtropical countries but following its increasing popularity its production has extended to more temperate areas such as the southern USA. It is commonly known as lady's finger. Estimates of world production and leading producers are shown in Table 4.
Table 4. Estimated world production of okra (Mt)
| World | 3 912 384 |
| India | 2 500 000 |
| Nigeria | 719 000 |
| Ghana | 150 000 |
| Pakistan | 109 000 |
| Iraq | 85 000 |
| Egypt | 76 000 |
| Saudi Arabia | 58 500 |
| Benin | 39 928 |
| Mexico | 36 000 |
| Burkina Faso | 26 000 |
| Turkey | 26 000 |
| Yemen | 19 100 |
Source: FAO (2001) http://www.apps.fao.org.
The species is very variable; commercial cultivars are erect annuals which become woody at maturity. The plant is primarily grown for it long, finger like fruits which are harvested immature. The mature seeds are relatively large and heavy (60 g per 100 seed) and show potential in various food supplements.
Nutritional Value and Chemical Composition
Tender immature fruits provide dietary fiber, protein, and vitamin C in human nutrition. As fruits mature the increase in fiber content renders them unpalatable. The species is characterized by a high mucilage content made up of acidic polysaccharides and having viscous colloidal dispersion properties in water, valued in soup and stew preparation. Okra seeds contain 12–17% oil, mainly monounsaturated fatty acids, and have potential in cereal-based diets due to their high lysine level. They also show promise for use as meat analogs as their protein concentrates and seed flour are more soluble than commercial soya products. Nutritional value and chemical composition are summarized in Table 2.
Handling and Storage
Okra requires a long growing period of relatively high temperatures. It is sensitive to frosts and commercial production is confined to summer months in subtropical and warmer parts of the temperate zone. Most cultivars require short day lengths for floral initiation and day-neutral selections are therefore required for cultivation in temperate countries. Commercial selections are also available based on visual characters such as absence of spines and fruit color. The crop is established from seed sown in situ as soon as spring temperatures are favorable. Fruit production is not synchronized and selective harvesting must be carried out manually throughout the summer. Exudates from the fruit surface and other plant parts can cause skin inflammation.
Fresh fruits have a short storage life and suffer chilling damage at 6 °C and below. Controlled-atmosphere storage at 5% oxygen and 10% carbon dioxide at 11 °C and 90–93% relative humidity extend shelf-life to 2 weeks.
Domestic and Industrial Use
The fresh immature fruits may be boiled or fried or used as a thickening agent in soups. Processing may be by canning and freezing and cultivars are selected for these outlets. Sun drying of fruit is conducted in developing countries for off-season use.
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