This is a classic recipe from the Punjab region in the north of India.  I am Punjabi, so we eat this dish often.  Curried cabbage is delicious and takes very little time to prepare.  It can be served as a side dish with any protein you like.  Traditionally, it is served with dal (see my Autumn Dal recipe), yogurt (My Mom’s Yogurt) and roti.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 medium sized head of green cabbage
• 1 bunch of cilantro
• 2 green chilies
• 10 curry leaves (optional,  if you don’t have these leave them out)
• 2 inches of ginger
• juice of 1 small lemon (in the photo the yellow cube in the center is a cube of frozen lemon juice.  When I get a lot of lemons from my neighbor’s tree, I juice them and freeze them into cubes.)
• 1/2 tablespoon of tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon of cumin seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon of black mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon of nigella seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon of garam masala
• 3 tablespoons of grapeseed oil
• salt and pepper to taste

PREP:

• Cut the cabbage in half, remove the core and then chop it coarsely.
• Peel the ginger and mince it.
• Finely mince the green chilies (I use them seeds and all.  If you want the dish less spicy you can discard the seeds.)
• Remove the curry leaves from their stems (the curry leaves are used whole and they are edible.  Unlike bay leaves, they do not need to be removed.)
• Remove the cilantro leaves from their stems.  Set aside a handful of leaves for garnish.  The remaining leaves and chopped up stems will be used in the cooking process.

COOK:

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• Coat a heavy stainless steel skillet with grapeseed oil.  Turn the flame to medium and heat up the oil.
• Once the oil is hot, add the cabbage first.  Then add the chilies, ginger, curry leaves, cilantro and all three seeds.
• Toss everything together and sauté until the seeds are toasted and the cabbage is slightly brown.  This should take about 5 minutes.
• At this point, add the tomato paste, powdered spices and 1 teaspoon of salt.  Sauté for another 5 minutes so that the tomato paste and spices have a chance to toast.
• Now add the lemon juice.  Turn the flame to low and cover with a lid.  Cook covered until the cabbage is tender.  My husband likes his cabbage a little crunchy.  Most Indian people like the cabbage to be soft.
• Once the cabbage is cooked to your liking, turn off the flame.  Taste the dish and adjust the salt and pepper to your taste.  Keep the lid on till you are ready to serve.
• When you are ready to serve, remove the lid and toss in the reserved cilantro leaves for garnish.

Transfer the cabbage to a serving platter.  We usually serve it family style.

I hope you enjoy this recipe.  My neighbor brought me a whole bunch of cruciferous vegetables.  These green leafy veggies are full of vitamins, minerals and fiber.  When prepared correctly, they are delicious.  My husband loves all of them.  Below is a photo.

I will be posting additional cruciferous veggie recipes in the future.