Okra Teriyaki Pork Rolls

by Posted on

Japanese and, as I have recently noticed, Korean habit of rolling thin meat slices around different vegetables is among the most extraordinary culinary inventions I know. Such rolls are fun to make, to eat, they usually look cute and are an excellent occasion to develop one’s culinary creativity. Carrots, green beans, leftover potato purée, shiso and chili… when it comes to the choice of fillings, sky is the limit. Until now I have been preparing only two types of meat rolls: Potato Teriyaki Pork Rolls (found on Nami’s Just One Cookbook) and Pork Rolls and Shiso in Tempura (found on Hyosun Ro’s Eating and Living). I thought it was high time I found a new recipe. Last weekend, while browsing through Shizuoka Gourmet’s blog or, to be precise, looking for inspiration in his wife’s lovely bentos, I stumbled upon pork rolls filled with okra. They looked very intriguing for someone who had never tasted okra and seemed perfect to extend my short list of meat and vegetable rolls.

Even though I had no instructions, my improvised recipe proved successful. Since I am a clumsy cook, of course every roll had a different size, they didn’t look half as attractive as in Shizuoka Gourmet‘s bento, but they were amazingly good. The crunchy and delicate okra went very well with the strong taste of pork and the sweetish, sticky teriyaki coating. This first experiment with okra was one of the best and healthiest tv snack-dinners I have ever had.

TIP: Pork rolls can be prepared the day before, stored in the fridge and fried just before serving.

Preparation : 30 minutes

Ingredients (serves 2):

12 -15 thin pork slices (max. 3 mm thick)

12 – 15 small okra pods or 6 – 8 big

flour

salt, pepper

oil

Teriyaki sauce:

3 tablespoons mirin

2 tablespoons soy sauce (or 4 if you have low sodium soy sauce)

1 teaspoons sugar

3 tablespoons sake

Wash the okra and cut it in two if required.

Season slightly the pork slices with salt and pepper.

Put the okra at one end of the pork roll.

Roll it tightly and put aside.

Do the same with all the pork strips.

Heat some oil in a pan.

Dust the pork rolls with flour and fry (sealed side down) on a medium heat until they are well browned (it will take about 15 minutes).

Pour the teriyaki sauce over the rolls and make sure they are well coated.

Let the sauce thicken for about one minute.

Transfer the rolls to a plate and garnish with the remaining sauce.

Published by Sissi

35 Replies to “Okra Teriyaki Pork Rolls”

  1. This is so interesting Sissi. I often see vegetables wrapped in rice or rice paper (or phyllo pastry) – but I love the idea of rolling vegetables in meat. A complete protein meal.

    Okra is one of my favourite vegetables – interestingly, it is somewhat unknown, almost exotic here in Canada (unlike Rufus who grows them in his backyard!).

    I have to say these pork rolls look gorgeous – the teriyaki sauce creates a beautiful, warm sear and the different sizing of the rolls only adds to that beauty. Very nice Sissi.

    1. Thank you so much, Kelly. You are right: no need to think of vegetables as a side-dish. I have never really had okra before, but I have fallen in love with these rolls. Okra was crunchy, has a delicate taste and I can well imagine it in many other dishes. It seems quite versatile.
      I can buy it here in every Asian shop and also in some normal supermarkets, but most people don’t cook it in Europe either. Greg is so lucky! I still remember his home-grown okra…

  2. I was looking for the wrapper you used until I realized that the glossy outside was actually the pork strip and teriyaki glaze. A very visually appealing dish though I’ve never tried okra so I’m a bit hesitant. I would like to try this dish on a buffet table first before making it myself. 🙂

    1. Thank you! Okra has a very neutral taste, it’s even more delicate than green beans, so I’m sure you would like it.

      1. Strangely enough, I really don’t like the taste of either green or yellow beans, I’m even iffy on snow peas, so that’s not necessarily an encouraging comparison. 🙁

  3. Looks delicious, Sissi, and I’m sure it is. I’ve seen mostly asparagus being rolled up in meat, this is the first time I’ve seen okra done this way. Very nicely different.

    1. Thank you so much, Ping. (Unfortunately I had to make night photos, I hated the visual result, but the taste was so great, I couldn’t wait with posting it). I will be able to put asparagus only in a couple of months, but okra, which doesn’t grow here, is imported from all over the world and available all the time, so I’m very glad.

  4. Sissi, upon first glance I thought you made finger sausages! I made vegetable pork rolls a couple of times, they are easy to make and yummy. The funny thing is yesterday I was cleaning out the frige, saw a box of okra my husband bought (for gumbo), was just wondering other than gumbo and fried okra, what else does one make with them… And here you are with a okra post, put a smile on my face!

    1. Jeno, it must be telepathy then! I will now have okra all the time in the fridge I think! It was amazing with pork and teriyaki.

  5. I have never seen okra cooked this way. Since the okra does not come in direct contact with oil, does it crisp up or remain slightly slimy?

    I wonder why meat is wrapped about vege’s. Is it to hide the vege’s so some kids and some adults eat it with realising?

    1. Okra wasn’t slimy at all (it was a bit slimy when I cut it in two, still raw) and slightly crunchy. I suppose it’s also good for adults who hate vegetables 😉
      I find this meat and vegetable rolls idea really funny and childish in a positive way 🙂

  7. This must taste good, Sissi! Okra must be crunchy and flavorful because of the pork’s juice blending with it. And with the teriyaki sauce, oh even better. Thank you for sharing the recipe and have a good week!

    ~ ray ~

  8. Do you have any problems finding okra in Switzerland, Sissi? It’s not a common thing here – I have to buy it from the supermarket’s special “tropical fruit and veg stand”.

    I’ve always loved the beef-wrapped cheese sticks which are then heated to melting point they often serve as yakitori in the Japanese restaurants here… of course, it must be typical to France… no other country in the world would surely wrap cheese in such a fashion and call it “Japanese cuisine”, though maybe I’m wrong! I’d never have thought to wrap vegetables too – it looks truly delicious – you could make a plate full of different ones and it would be a really fun surprise to see what was in each one!

    1. Thank you so much, Charles. We definitely had fun with these watching tv and sipping cocktails…. without guilt (it was so much better than having crisps or similar snacks!). I must make several different rolls next time. Thanks for the idea!
      Okra is sold here in every Asian grocery shop, so I won’t have any problems getting it. I also find it at my farmers’ market (some north-African stalls sell it all year). I am very happy because it will be another all-year vegetable I will be able to use. Apparently it’s very healthy too (a Japanese friend told me).
      I’m sure the beef and cheese rolls must please French customers. The Swiss would love them too. Actually maybe I’ll make it one day with good gruyère… My husband will probably love them. Thank you for one more excellent idea!

  9. a lot of people I know hate okra because they find it slimy. I love it though! in singapore we often have it in fish curry, yum! this sounds delicious! i dare even say that it sounds like the kind of dish that will turn my friends around!

    1. Thank you, Shuhan. It was a bit slimy when raw and cut in half, but once cooked it was only crunchy (maybe if I cooked it more… or maybe the sliminess was absorbed by the pork slices?).

  10. I really like the shine of the teriyaki sauce on the pork rolls, makes it all the more delicious looking! this dish reminds me of one of my fave bbq dish… asparagus wrapped with bacon… yum…. 🙂

    1. Thank you, Sylvia. I also love asparagus and now that I think of it, okra could become my Winter asparagus replacement.

  11. Dear Sissi!
    Greetings!
    Don’t worry, your okra rolls are really yummy looking!
    Uniform sizes are for nitpicking Japanese! LOL
    By the way okra is African, so there is no problem in getting them in Switzerland!
    In Shizuoka, we are lucky as this is the “Garden of Japan” as far as varieties are concerned. We also have red okra and jumbo okra. The latter are great as o-hitashi (steamed and then marinated). Some French restaurants here also use the flowers. And we also have plenty of organic specimen!
    Well done! The Missus is really happy she gave you an idea!
    Best regards,
    Robert-Gilles

    1. Robert-Gilles, thank you for such kind words. I’m happy you both approve of my transformation. These rolls will very soon reappear on our table. You are right: okra is widely available here, although rather in Asian shops. The one which sells shiso all year round also sells okra, so it’s very convenient, even though nothing comes from Japan.
      Now that you mention red okra, I remember it from your blog! It looked incredible.
      Now you gave me a marinating idea…
      Thank your wife once more! She makes very tempting and inspiring dishes.

  12. I haven’t made pork rolls for a long time and your ‘teri’ on the pork is amazingly delicious! And love your bowl/plate, Sissi…. really nice! I roll up Okra with pork and cook in the same/similar sauce too. I think we don’t have specific name for it but all the housewives think similar. We have like maybe 10 veggies that go well with sliced beef and pork. My favorite is always eggplant though. 🙂 I think we use sliced beef because we don’t really eat big chunk of beef often and use a lot of slices for stir fry and rolling other ingredients. Not particularity for the kids, but it includes that reason too. In general, we consume much less portion of meat in our food and slices of meat is perfect to fit in our food. We probably care more for quality than quantity. 🙂

    1. Thank you so much, Nami. The bowl is one of my finds at the Japanese shop of course. I love it too and have two identical, but have been thinking of buying more… I see in Japan okra rolls are popular, but for me it was so exotic! I can totally understand the quality preference. I have been buying free-range meat for quite a long time and I never even look at the cheaper industrially bred cuts. The taste is so different (not to mention the nicer life animals have), I don’t count. I’m not a 500g piece of meat eater either, so small quantity is enough 😉
      I must try rolling eggplant. Thank you for the idea! (Oh, maybe I have missed it in your ancient posts… sorry if it’s the case).

  13. That is a wonderful and brilliant idea! That dish looks amazing and is ever so original. I have never seen anything like that before.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

    1. Thanks, Greg. I remembered the okras you have had this year from your garden and thought how lucky you are.

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