10-Minute Indian Cabbage

The other day I was throwing together a simple Indian dinner – Indian sour chickpeas (channa) with some brown and wild rice I’d cooked weeks before and stored in the freezer – and it needed one more element. One quick, simple element I could throw together in no time from what I had in the fridge. What I had in the fridge was not much: a few beets and radishes and a half head of cabbage. I love cabbage, but by this time of year I’m pretty bored with it and desperate for a new treatment. So I did what anyone would do – I Googled “Indian cabbage.” And this recipe, from Michael Natkin’s blog Herbivoracious, was one of the first things that came up.

I hadn’t seen this blog before, and I confess I looked at nothing but the cabbage recipe at the time, but perusing it now is making me hungry. I think I need to try his Vietnamese Caramel-Cooked Tofu pretty darn soon, even if it is a video recipe.

Anyway, I whipped this together in a flash (with some small changes in technique). Natkin called it “Five-Minute Indian Cabbage,” but I think it took a tad longer than that, so have changed the name. In any case, it’s a tasty, simple side dish that you can whip up in the time it takes your rice to steam after you turn off the heat. (You do steam your rice for ten minutes after you turn off the heat, right? It’s absolutely the key to good rice.) The cabbage is gently sweet and spicy but not hot – unless you want to make it hot, in which case add more crushed red chile or put in some cayenne. The turmeric lends the cabbage a golden tint that is gorgeous on the plate and contrasts in a lovely way with the black mustard seeds scattered throughout.

This dish is very adjustable to your mood and what you have on hand, and is just a useful recipe to have around. Add or remove spices as you desire, keeping in mind the dish’s Indian character.

10-Minute Indian Cabbage

1 tablespoon vegetable or peanut oil, butter, or ghee
1 teaspoon minced or grated fresh ginger, optional
1 tablespoon black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds or 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon crushed red chile, or to taste
2 tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut, preferably toasted, optional
1/2 head cabbage, core cut out, sliced into ribbons
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt, to taste
Squirt of lemon juice, optional

Heat the oil or butter in a large skillet. When it is hot, add the ginger and mustard seeds and saute about 30 to 60 seconds, until the mustard seeds start to make popping sounds. Add the remaining spices and coconut and saute another 30 seconds.

Add the cabbage, salt, and a tablespoon or two of water. Saute until the cabbage is coated in the spice mixture, then put a lid on the pan, reduce the heat, and let the cabbage steam for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until it’s tender-crisp to your taste. Adjust seasonings as needed, stir in lemon juice if using, and serve.
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