We Love Okra

We like festivals in the South. We like food in the South. It would make sense that we would have a lot of our festivals be food themed. The Peach Festival is in July, there are at least two Apple Festivals in September in different parts of my state, the Cornbread Festival, the Chitlins Festival (I don’t even really want to explain that one), and the list goes on. My friends and I like both festivals AND food, so it would make sense that we would patronize as many of these events as possible. Last September we made the logistical plans early and made our way to Irmo, South Carolina for their famous Okra Strut. It is coming up again, which is making me remember the fun from last year!

This is okra

Okra is a popular food around here. A lovely green veggie in the shape of a pod… it is eaten in gumbo, sauteed, mixed into casseroles, or sliced and deep fried. Hence the reason there is an entire festival dedicated to it. But Irmo has taken it a step further…. it has combined it with a Strut, which is a dance style. So basically, if I understand the premise, the town of Irmo has created a dance in honor of okra, and then dedicated a weekend festival to it as well. Love the south.

fried okra

Not only is there a festival, but there is also a parade. Complete with dancers, politicians, and a giant inflatable okra man. Yes, giant inflatable okra character… check out the picture below. Gail, Puff, Bimmer and I went to the parade, which was slightly longer than I anticipated, and then headed to the festival… where we all consumed fried okra and it was great! However, I have to admit that I didn’t see the famous Stut, but  did see the giant green man!

OK- Anyone else have a festival that is unique to their area?