Fixin' to Fix the Fixin's

Good morning, class. It's time for another lesson in Southern dialect. Today our word is fixin'.  

We liked that word so much that we gave it several different meanings. It can mean to start or to get ready as in, "I'm fixin' to tell you the meaning of fixin'." Next, it can mean to repair as in, "I'm fixin' to be fixin' the stove so I can fix the fixin's." Lastly, it means side dishes as in, "I am fixin' to fix some mighty good fixin's."  

Fixin' is a versatile word and, as you can plainly see from the examples, rolls off our tongues with routine frequency. We have a love affair with fixin'. It's just a flat out good word.  

We are going to be using fixin' today in the context of side dishes. This is a food column, you know. We are fixin' to be fixin' us up some fixin's that we fixed.  

Coming up with fixin's that are quick and easy is sometimes more taxing than fixin' the main dish. I'm fixin' to share some recipes with you. 

They're so easy I'm embarrassed to call them recipes. Let's just say they're ideas.  

All three can be ready in 30 minutes.

Sweet Potato Oven Fries  

Sweet potatoes! How I love thee! They’re one of my favorite foods. That’s a glowing endorsement because I L-O-V-E  lots of foods. Sweet potatoes  are just as happy in a savory dish as they are in sweet dish. Don’t wait until Thanksgiving Day to enjoy this marvelous orange tuber.

Sweet Potato Oven Fries can accompany a beef, pork or poultry entrée.   Allow one medium sweet potato per adult but don’t be surprised if they eat more. They’re just that good.

sweet potatoes

olive oil

kosher salt

Wash potatoes. It’s not necessary to peel. Cut them into planks and then into thin strips.

Prepare a baking sheet by lining with aluminum foil and spraying with a non-stick spray. I spray everything with non-stick spray. Nothing’s safe from me. Toss in olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake at 450 degrees for 30 minutes or until they reached the desired degree of browness.

 Roasted Mini Sweet Peppers and Onions

Mini sweet peppers are almost an obsession with me. They’ve become a refrigerator staple and I eat as many raw as cooked. They’re red, yellow and orange and much sweeter than green bell peppers.

Roasting them caramelizes the sugars and intensifies the flavor. Peppers and onions are a natural combination.

Cut them in larger pieces to keep them from getting mushy before the sugars caramelize.

Mini sweet peppers

sweet onions

olive oil

seasoning of choice

I used a double handful of peppers and one sweet onion. Wash and trim the ends from the peppers. Cut in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds if you like but I don’t find that necessary. Peel the onion and cut in large segments. Place in a large skillet or on a baking sheet. Add olive oil and seasoning and toss until well coated. Bake at 450 degrees for 30 minutes or until they reach the desired degree of browness.

Remove from oven and serve immediately.

Roasted Okra

Roasting vegetables is nothing new to me. I’ll roast anything thing that tries to move. It occurred to me that I had never roasted one of my very favorite vegetables: okra. There’s no time like the present and, fortunately, I had okra in the freezer. I thawed and drained them. Place them on a baking sheet sprayed with non-stick spray, drizzled olive oil on them and sprinkled a generous dose of 4-1-1 seasoning and roasted at 450 degrees for about 30 minutes until they starting turning brown.  

1 pound fresh or frozen okra whole okra (if using frozen okra, thaw and drain)

olive oil

kosher salt

Goodness gracious day in the morning! They are unbelievably good. You really get the flavor of fried okra without all the extra work and clean up. For those of you with an aversion to okra because of the texture (you say slime, I say texture), you should give this version a try. We really didn’t notice “the texture," but we’ll eat okra anyway you throw it at us.

I’ll be thinking about Roasted Okra until I eat them again….which will be tomorrow.

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