Okra is ick. It tastes like boiled slug dipped in sand.
No idea how much mom uses--I think she has frozen bags of it and just tosses in a couple handfuls.
I should add that I make that jambalaya from memory--and it changes a little bit every time. And the bigger the onion, the spicier it is. The spicy in this dish has NOTHING to do with the pepper and everything to do with the onion.