When the Okra Fails: A Panic-Free, Quick Meal That Hit the Spot

Some nights, dinner doesn’t go as planned.

Like this week, when Eric lovingly made an okra stew… and the okra turned out to be basically inedible. If you don't pick okra at the exact right moment, it can be tough - literally. (Side note - the flavor was delicious, so he'll be remaking it with better okra soon.)

Meanwhile, I am deep into marathon training and constantly hangry and was not in the mood to troubleshoot fibrous vegetables.

But instead of spiraling into a snack-dinner situation or ordering takeout, we pivoted. Fast.

The Quick Meal We Ended Up With:

• White rice in the Instant Pot (set it to cook for 4 minutes—done before I finished prepping everything else)

• Crumbled tofu (yes, crumbled—not a typo, it mimicked ground meat texture perfectly)

• Chopped mushrooms + cabbage from the fridge

• Quick sauté on the stove with:

  • Garlic

  • Onion

  • Sesame oil

  • Chili crisp (because yum)

  • Soy sauce

We served the veggie + tofu mix over the fluffy rice and voilà—we were back at the dinner table in under 20 minutes.

Was it perfect?

Nope.

Could it have had more fiber? Probably.

Could I have thrown in another veggie or two? Sure.

Did Eric round his out with a side of kimchi for gut health and flavor? He did.

But here’s the thing: It was fast. It was satisfying. It was healthy enough. And most importantly, it got us fed without stress, shame, or a giant mess.

Real-Life Wellness Isn’t Fancy

This meal wasn’t Instagram-worthy. It didn’t come from a recipe card. But it did exactly what we needed it to do: nourish us, quickly, with what we had on hand.

These are the kinds of meals I want to normalize here at Farm Table Health—the unfussy, flexible kind. The kind you can throw together while you’re still in running clothes or coming off a long day. The kind that feel good to eat, even when they’re not perfect.

So if you're staring down a fridge with random leftovers and five half-used veggies—you’re doing great. You don’t need fancy. You just need a few staples, a pinch of creativity, and a reminder that “good enough” is usually pretty darn great. Even quick meals can be delicious.

Your Turn: What’s your go-to "everything's falling apart but I need dinner now" meal? Bonus points if it involves chili crisp.

Let’s share the real-life wins—okra failure and all. 🥄