I ended up making this because every second thing in my feed seemed to be someone soaking okra overnight and drinking the water. Fair enough, but a few pods left in water give you slightly slippery water with almost no flavour, and I would rather drink something I look forward to. So this is the juiced version. The okra is the point of it, the cucumber keeps it light, and the apple and the lemon do the work of making it taste like a drink rather than a health chore. It takes about ten minutes.
Why these ingredients work
Okra is a mallow, not the sort of thing most people think to juice, and its useful part is the mucilage, the slippery soluble fibre that oozes out the second you cut a pod. Because mucilage dissolves rather than sitting in the pulp, a good amount of it stays in the glass after you strain, which is unusual for a juice and is the whole reason soaked okra became a thing in the first place. On top of that it brings a solid amount of vitamin K and folate, some vitamin C, and more calcium than most vegetables. Cucumber is there for water and a clean background, the two green apples bring the sweetness, and the lemon sharpens the lot so the okra does not taste flat.
Worth saying plainly, though: most of what gets claimed for okra water, the blood sugar talk, the weight loss talk, comes from lab dishes, animal studies and a handful of small trials rather than strong human evidence, and a glass of it will not do the job of your medication. What you are actually getting here is an honest low calorie glass with some soluble fibre and a fair amount of vitamin K and vitamin C, and that is a good enough reason on its own.
FAQ
Is okra juice the same as okra water?
Not quite. Okra water is pods left to soak in water, which gives you a thin, slightly slippery drink with very little taste. This is juiced with cucumber, apple and lemon, so you get the same mucilage but in something that actually tastes of fruit. If you like the soaked version, you will like this more.
Does okra juice actually help digestion?
Okra’s mucilage is a soluble fibre, and soluble fibre is the kind that feeds gut bacteria and can help keep things moving, so there is a sensible reason to drink it. What there is not is a large human trial showing a glass of okra juice sorts out bloating or anything else. Treat it as a pleasant way to get some soluble fibre into your day, not as a treatment. If you have IBS or you are prone to wind, go gently at first, because mucilage and the FODMAPs in okra can make it worse in some people.
Who should be careful with okra juice?
Two groups, mainly. Okra is high in oxalate, so if you have had kidney stones it is worth a word with your GP before making this a daily habit. And like any dark green juice it carries vitamin K, which is the vitamin that interacts with warfarin and similar blood thinners, so if you take one, keep your intake steady and let your anticoagulant clinic know rather than swinging from none to a glass a day.
More digestion recipes: see the full Digestion collection.
Okra, Cucumber and Apple Juice
Equipment
- 1 Juicer A masticating or cold press juicer handles okra better than a centrifugal one, which can clog on the mucilage.
- 1 Budget cold press juicer The cheapest sensible way in if you are not sure you will stick at it.
- 1 High-speed blender Use this route if you already own a blender and no juicer.
- 1 Nut milk bag For the blender method, to strain the pulp and let you choose how much mucilage to keep.
- 2 Airtight glass bottles For keeping a batch in the fridge, though this one is best drunk the day you make it.
Ingredients
- 8 okra pods about 120 g, hard stalk ends trimmed, cut into 2 cm lengths
- 1 cucumber a medium one, about 300 g, peeled only if the skin is thick and waxy
- 2 green apples crisp eating apples such as Granny Smith or Braeburn, cored but not peeled
- 1 unwaxed lemon rinsed if unwaxed, scrubbed and peeled if waxed, then cut into halves
Instructions
Juicer method
- Rinse everything. Top and tail the okra pods, trim away the hard stalk end, and cut them into short lengths of about 2 cm. They turn slippery as soon as the knife goes through them, so do not worry if they feel slimy, that is the mucilage you are after.
- If the lemon is waxed, give it a scrub in warm water and dry it, then cut it into halves. Quarter the apples and cut out the cores, there is no need to peel them. Cut the cucumber into rough chunks.
- Feed the cucumber and the apple through the juicer first so the machine is running wet, then drop the okra in, then finish with the lemon. If your juicer labours over the okra, alternate it with a few pieces of apple or cucumber to keep everything moving.
- Stir the juice and pour it into bottles. It comes out a little thicker than most juices because of the okra, and it will settle if you leave it standing, so give it a quick stir before you drink it.
Blender method
- Prepare everything the same way, cutting the okra, cucumber and apple into smaller pieces so the blender can cope with them.
- Tip it all into the blender with 150 ml of cold water and blend on high for about a minute, until the okra has broken down and there are no big lumps left.
- Pour it through a nut milk bag or a fine sieve over a jug and squeeze gently. Squeeze lightly for a cleaner, thinner juice, or a little harder if you want more of the okra's slippery texture left in the glass.
- Taste it and adjust. If it is thicker than you would like, loosen it with another splash of cold water, then bottle it and drink it the same day.