don't overcook. the texture is right up there with overcooked rotting calamari.

serenejournal has got it. A newer use invented by a southern cook here, is to take the baby okra seeds and use them like sunflower seeds or popcorn.

It's use in gumbo is as a thickener. many southern stews and soups use it for that.

http://www.neurophys.wisc.edu/ravi/okra/