Ladies finger, as I know it and/or Okra (Bhindi, Vendakka) as you probably know it has a bad reputation. Unfortunate, I would add. 'Cos leave it in the hands of the expert cooks (in the hands of people like my mom, my aunt, grandmom - you get the gist) and this sticky vegetable gets transformed into crispy and a chewy addiction. Now add it as a side to Onion Sambar and Rasam (some fried papadams dont hurt either!), you have "Burp" land (and a paunchy belly!) guaranteed in few minutes. I never really associated mushy with Okra in my growing up years. I loved them. It is one of those rare rare things that has a "good for you" attached to it and actually tastes delicious. I grew up in a place that believes that Okra increases your brain power (or something like that) enough to turn you into a math whiz! Now for all the ladies finger that I have consumed, I should have had at least a couple of Olympiad trophies in my shelf (instead of just dust that adorns it incessantly!) Sigh!

Anyways, this is a simple South Indian curry that my mom makes with Okra. Make this during the Okra season when you would find the young and tender ones, because they make the best curry - the likes you probably would be hard pressed to enjoy during the rest of the time. Mushy land is unheard of when you have tender Okra in your hands. You don't have to fry them to make them crispy nor do you have to force that gumbo down the throat 'cos "that's the only thing that lousy okra is fit for". It certainly is not. There are few tips, I have provided in there just in case you want to make do without the tender ones and yet don't want Miss Mushy in your plate. This is a mildly spiced dish, highlighting just the Okra. I am also partial to the beautiful color of ladies finger without the additional coloring it gets from the spices/other ingredients  that one tends to add to Okra based dishes.