Okra Health Benefits, Nutritional Facts, Tips for Cooking Okra
The health benefits of Okra are outstanding and it has been called a 'super food' because of the array of nutrients it provides.
This article summarizes the nutritional facts for Okra, compared with other green vegetables.
Okra is grown throughout the warm temperate and tropical regions of the world. Okra, which is also known as 'gumbo', is a very healthy green edible pod, from a small herbaceous plant belonging to the mallow family (scientific name: Abelmoschus esculentus).
The plants yield an abundance of fibrous fruits or 'pods'.
It grows best in rich and well drained soil. The light to dark green pods are about 5-15 cm in length, and appear after growing for about 45 days.
The pods are harvested while they are immature and are eaten as vegetable.
Health Benefits of Okra and Nutrition Facts
- Okra have very few calories, with just 30 Cal per 100 g. They also have a low calorie density and are rich in fiber which means that they digest slowly.
- Okra are low in fat and contain no cholesterol or saturated fats
- Okra are a rich source of minerals, dietary fiber, vitamins and have been used beneficially for weight control programs.
- Okra provide 36% of the recommended daily allowance for vitamin C, 44% for Vitamin K and 13% for Vitamin A. These also provide 43% of the daily allowance for manganese
- The pods contain quite high amounts of antioxidants such as of vitamin A, and flavonoid compounds and beta carotenes, xanthin and lutein.
- Fresh Okra pods are good source of folates, providing about 22% of RDA per 100 g. They are also rich in the other B group vitamins such as vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), niacin, pantothenic acid and thiamin.
Nutrition Facts for Okra
|
Nutrient Value for 100 g
|
Nutrient Concentration
|
% Recom. Daily Allowance
|
|---|---|---|
|
Energy
|
31 Cal
|
1.5%
|
|
Carbohydrates
|
7.0 g
|
5.4%
|
|
Protein
|
2.0 g
|
4.0%
|
|
Total Fat
|
0.1 g
|
0.5%
|
|
Cholesterol
|
0 mg
|
0.0%
|
|
Dietary Fiber
|
3.2 g
|
9.0%
|
|
Vitamins
|
|
|
|
Folates
|
88 mcg
|
22.0%
|
|
Niacin
|
1.0 mg
|
6.0%
|
|
Pantothenic acid
|
0.25 mg
|
5.0%
|
|
Pyridoxine
|
0.21 mg
|
16.5%
|
|
Riboflavin
|
0.06 mg
|
4.5%
|
|
Thiamin
|
0.20 mg
|
17.0%
|
|
Vitamin C
|
21.1 mg
|
36.0%
|
|
Vitamin A
|
375 IU
|
12.5%
|
|
Vitamin E
|
0.36 mg
|
2.5%
|
|
Vitamin K
|
53 mcg
|
44.0%
|
|
Electrolytes
|
|
|
|
Sodium
|
8 mg
|
0.5%
|
|
Potassium
|
303 mg
|
6.0%
|
|
Minerals
|
|
|
|
Calcium
|
81 mg
|
8.0%
|
|
Copper
|
0.09 mg
|
10.0%
|
|
Iron
|
0.80 mg
|
10.0%
|
|
Magnesium
|
57 mg
|
14.0%
|
|
Manganese
|
0.99 mg
|
43.0%
|
|
Phosphorus
|
63 mg
|
9.0%
|
|
Selenium
|
0.7 mcg
|
1.0%
|
|
Zinc
|
0.60 mg
|
5.5%
|
|
Phyto-nutrients
|
|
|
|
Carotene
|
225 mcg
|
--
|
|
Crypto-xanthin
|
0 mcg
|
--
|
|
Lutein-zeaxanthin
|
516 mcg
|
--
|
Comparison of the Nutrients in Okra with other Vegetables
The table below provides a comparison between Okra, Onion, Green Peas, Kale and Green Pepper.
- Okra has much fewer calories than green peas and Kale
- Magnesium levels are high and are similar to the levels in green peas
- Okra has a much higher level of Calcium, higher than all the other vegetables
- Folate levels are very high
- Vitamin B1 (thiamine) levels are higher in all vegetables except for peas
- Dietary Fiber is higher than or the other vegetables
Nutrient Comparisons with other Green Vegetables
|
Nutrient
|
OKRA - 1 cup cooked Okra
|
ONION - One small onion
|
BOILED PEAS - One Cup
|
KALE - One cup of cooked
|
GREEN PEPPER - One small raw green
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Protein
|
3.0 g
|
0.83g
|
8.58 g
|
2.47 g
|
64 g
|
|
Calories
|
35
|
26
|
134
|
36
|
15
|
|
Dietary fiber
|
4 g
|
0.8g
|
8.8
|
2.6 g
|
1.3 g
|
|
Potassium
|
216 mg
|
100 mg
|
434 mg
|
296 mg
|
130 mg
|
|
Phosphorus
|
51 mg
|
21 mg
|
187 mg
|
36 mg
|
15 mg
|
|
Magnesium
|
58 mg
|
13 mg
|
62 mg
|
23 mg
|
7 mg
|
|
Calcium
|
123 mg
|
0.14 mg
|
43 mg
|
94 mg
|
7 mg
|
|
Iron
|
0.45 mg
|
7 mg
|
5 mg
|
1.17 mg
|
0.25 mg
|
|
Sodium
|
10 mg
|
2 mg
|
3.0 mg
|
30 mg
|
2 mg
|
|
Zinc
|
0.69 mg
|
0.13 mg
|
1.9 mg
|
0.31 mg
|
0.1 mg
|
|
Copper
|
0.136 mg
|
0.04 mg
|
0.277mg
|
0.203 mg
|
0.049 mg
|
|
Manganese
|
0.47 mg
|
0.092 mg
|
0.62 mg
|
0.541 mg
|
0.09 mg
|
|
Selenium
|
0.6 mcg
|
0.4 mcg
|
3.0 mg
|
1.2 mcg
|
|
|
Vitamin C
|
26.1 mg
|
3.1 mg
|
22.7 m
|
53.3 mg
|
59.5 mg
|
|
Niacin
|
1.394 mg
|
0.099 mg
|
3.234 mg
|
0.65 mg
|
0.355 mg
|
|
Vitamin B1 (thiamine)
|
0.211 mg
|
0.025 mg
|
0.414 mg
|
0.069 mg
|
0.042 mg
|
|
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
|
0.088 mg
|
0.014 mg
|
0.238 mg
|
0.091 mg
|
0.021 mg
|
|
Vitamin B6
|
0.299 mg
|
0.077 mg
|
0.346 mg
|
0.179 mg
|
0.166 mg
|
|
Folate
|
74 mcg
|
0.068 mg
|
0.101mg
|
17 mcg
|
7 mcg
|
|
Pantothenic Acid
|
0.341 mg
|
9 mcg
|
0.245 mg
|
0.064 mg
|
0.073 mg
|
|
Vitamin A
|
453 IU
|
1 IU
|
1282 IU
|
17,707 IU
|
274 IU
|
|
Vitamin K
|
64 mcg
|
0.3 mcg
|
41.4 mg
|
1062mcg
|
5.5 mcg
|
|
Vitamin E
|
0.43 mg
|
0.01 mg
|
0.22 mg
|
1.1 mg
|
0.27 mg
|
Preparation and Serving Methods for Okra
- Wash the pods very well in several exchanges of in water. Add a little vinegar to the rinse water to remove dust, dirt and any chemicals. The vinegar stops the Okra becoming slimy when cooked.
Cut off crown end and tips. Usually the pods are sliced into small circular pieces and used in variety of cuisines in Indian and Asian countries. They can also be cut diagonally and steamed and used as an accompaniment for various meat dishes. - Bring the Okra to room temperature before slicing or cooking.
- Okra cooks very quickly, so always cook it using moderate heating temperature.
When sauteing or stir-frying okra, make sure the pieces are spread out as a single layer in the pan. If the pan becomes over-crowded and piled on itself, it will sweat, release moisture and may become slimy. - Only add salt to okra when you have finished cooking it. Otherwise it may become slimy.
- Never cover the pan while the okra is cooking. This stops steam and moisture building up.
