However, according to Gale, not having filé on hand isn't necessarily a culinary catastrophe. "Okra can be used instead of filé powder," she says, "but it will have a distinct okra flavor." ...

If you can't find Chinese sausage, substitute another fatty, semi-hard type, such as Spanish chorizo - you'll need about 150g (5⅓oz). Trim off the stem ends of the okra, then cut the pods into ...

Other blood experts say that the okra idea must be tested more thoroughly, on humans as well as dogs. All plasma substitutes offer the danger of putting large amounts of foreign matter into the blood.