In case you’re a fan of my purple lentil curry (RPL’s hottest recipe!), enable me to introduce you to its extremely cool cousin—creamy cabbage curry.

The common-or-garden cabbage is cooked into luxurious silkiness (you received’t even discover there’s 8 complete cups of it!), flavored with warming Indian spices, and simmered with coconut milk and almond butter to grow to be a richly creamy and fragrant curry.

And don’t be afraid to avoid wasting for lunch the subsequent day as a result of this curry tastes even higher after a flavor-enhancing night time within the fridge!

Desk of Contents:
1. Ingredient notes
2. Step-by-step directions
3. Ideas for making this recipe
4. Ceaselessly Requested Questions
5. Recipe card with notes

You’ve been sleeping on cabbage

I’ve been on a mission to make cabbage extra thrilling and to assist house cooks see it may be a lot greater than coleslaw. 

Living proof #1: The Buttery Charred Cabbage from my cookbook Massive Vegan Taste, which was successful at my restaurant popup with Avant Backyard earlier this 12 months (make it your self by flipping to p. 401!). 

Living proof #2: This new cabbage curry, which is creamy, indulgent, and has the right contact of sweetness from the cabbage.  

Simply ask Max—that is truly his new favourite RPL recipe, which is saying lots as a result of he’s continually making an attempt new recipes. Plus, Max is definitely the shock hero of this recipe. 

After recipe take a look at #4 (which was good…however we’re not aiming for merely “good” within the RPL kitchen, are we?) Max—whose culinary suggestions is often restricted to “It’s good,” or “It’s good”—stated, “What about including almond butter such as you do in your purple lentil curry?”

Quick ahead to recipe take a look at #5 and, lo and behold, the almond butter dramatically improved the curry’s taste and texture. Let’s hear it for Max 👏🏽

Ingredient notes

Cabbage

The magic of this recipe lies in slicing it or shredding it about as thinly as you may, then sautéing till silky. This enables the cabbage to soften into the curry and lends the completed dish a refined sweetness and texture that’s lightyears away from the in-your-face cruciferousness of uncooked cabbage.

Substitutes: Good ol’ inexperienced cabbage works nice right here (it’s extensively accessible and cheap), however you can additionally use napa or savoy cabbage (napa cabbage will prepare dinner extra rapidly). Crimson cabbage is earthier and fewer candy, so I’d skip that. 

Indian aromatics and spices

Whereas that is on no account a conventional Indian recipe, it would dazzle you with its daring Indian flavors.

That’s as a result of this recipe, like a lot of my Indian recipes, begins out with aromatics—on this case, garlic and serrano pepper—adopted by a beneficiant mix of Indian spices.

To maintain issues beginner-friendly and weeknight-friendly, I take advantage of a mix of floor spices as an alternative of complete spices, and it really works extremely nicely right here: purple chili powder, cumin, coriander, turmeric, plus garam masala on the finish.

Substitute: This recipe requires Kashmiri chili powder, which is a gentle Indian purple chili powder with a vibrant purple shade and barely candy, smoky taste. Bought on-line or at South Asian grocers. In case you don’t have it, use 1 ¾ teaspoons of candy or scorching paprika with ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper (or simply 2 tsp of paprika and no cayenne).

Identification Tip: When you have purple Indian chili powder at house however unsure what sort, style only a tiny bit. If it’s actually spicy, it’s doubtless not Kashmiri chili powder, so use simply ¼ to ½ teaspoon of that to keep away from a very spicy curry.

Coconut milk

That is the key behind the luxuriously creamy mouthfeel and indulgence issue. The fats within the coconut milk additionally helps mood the warmth from the serrano peppers and spices, making for a well-balanced curry.

Purchasing Tip: Purchase full-fat coconut milk in a can, not cartons of coconut milk or “cream of coconut” (which is sweetened). 

Substitute: In order for you a lighter curry, you can use mild canned coconut milk, or make your personal: use ⅔ cup (160 mL) full-fat coconut milk with 1 cup (240 mL) water. Full disclosure: we tried the latter and the outcomes had been effective however not almost nearly as good as the unique.

In case you actually need to keep away from coconut milk, the perfect substitute could be a selfmade cashew cream/milk. See the primary FAQ for directions.

Chickpeas

Chickpeas makes this cabbage curry an entire meal, including additional fiber and a few protein! If you wish to make this dish much more filling, be at liberty to throw in a second can of chickpeas together with ½ cup (120 mL) of water, as there received’t be sufficient liquid in any other case. 

Almond Butter

Thanks once more to Max for his suggestion to incorporate this ingredient! It provides an additional layer of richness and a refined nuttiness that work in tandem to make the curry beautiful. 

Belief me—having tried the variations with out almond butter and with almond butter back-to-back, I can definitively say that the almond butter (simply 2 tablespoons!) works like a appeal.

Substitute: Cashew butter works nicely. When you have a nut allergy, sub with well-stirred tahini. 

Step-by-step directions

In a big sauté pan, warmth up the oil over medium-high. Add the garlic and serrano pepper and stir ceaselessly for 30 to 60 seconds.

Add cabbage and toss to coat within the oil and aromatics.

Prepare dinner for 10 minutes, stirring sometimes, till tender and browned in spots. Add the tomato paste and floor spices (purple chili pepper, coriander, cumin, turmeric, salt, black pepper) and stir ceaselessly for two minutes.

Add the tomatoes and prepare dinner for 4 to five minutes, till they’ve softened.

Pour within the coconut milk, chickpeas, almond butter, and a bit extra salt. Stir nicely. 

Simmer, uncovered, for 15 to twenty minutes, stirring each jiffy to stop sticking, till the flavors have melded collectively and curry has thickened. 

Take away from warmth and stir within the garam masala, lime juice, and cilantro. Relaxation for five to 10 minutes earlier than serving.

Ideas for making this recipe

Slice the cabbage thinly

What I like about this recipe is that the cabbage actually melts into the curry. There aren’t large chunks of it such as you may discover in different recipes. So make sure you slice the cabbage thinly, nearly as thinly as you may. A pointy knife works nice, however you may also use a mandoline (I like this handheld one and this bigger, skilled mannequin).

Tailor the spice accordingly

I name for 2 serrano peppers on this recipe, which sounds fairly spicy, however the full-fat coconut milk tempers the spice, yielding a curry with medium warmth.

For the spicy lovers: Use 3 serrano peppers! 
For the spice-averse: Use 1 serrano pepper or perhaps a jalapeño pepper. In case you can deal with some warmth, maintain the membranes and seeds in; if not, scrape them out first. 

Modify the warmth as wanted

Because the cabbage cooks, regulate the pan—if the cabbage begins browning rapidly or the garlic begins to get darkish, decrease the warmth to medium and add a splash of water to scrape up the fond (fond = browned bits on the underside of the pan).

Stir to stop sticking (and add water as wanted)

The curry will thicken because it simmers due to the coconut milk and almond butter so that you’ll must stir each jiffy to stop sticking on the underside of the pot.

Relying on how thick or liquidy you like your curries, you could need to add some water throughout simmering, about ¼ to ½ cup (60 to 120 mL). 

Ceaselessly Requested Questions

Did this cabbage curry make you fall in love with cabbage? Make my day by leaving me a score and evaluate under ☺️

Massive Vegan Taste

Methods and 150 recipes to grasp vegan cooking.

In case you suppose cabbage can’t be luxurious, suppose once more! This creamy cabbage curry delivers nourishment whereas being critically indulgent. The cabbage melts down into silky sweetness and mingles with warming Indian spices earlier than simmering with coconut milk and chickpeas for a comfortable, full meal.

• Warmth the oil in a 12-inch sauté pan over medium-high for a couple of minutes, or till shimmering. Add the garlic and serrano pepper and stir very ceaselessly for 30 to 60 seconds till aromatic (you don’t need the garlic to brown).

• Add the cabbage and use tongs to coat it into the oil and aromatics, tossing nicely. Season with ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Prepare dinner for 10 minutes, stirring sometimes, or till tender and browned in spots.NOTE: If it begins to brown rapidly, decrease the warmth to medium. In case you begin to see browned bits inventory to the underside of the pan, add a splash of water to deglaze.Multitasking possibility. Whereas the cabbage cooks: (a) In a small bowl mix the tomato paste, coriander, cumin, chili powder, turmeric, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and plenty of black pepper; (b) finely chop the tomatoes and put aside.

• Whereas the cabbage cooks: (a) In a small bowl mix the tomato paste, purple chili powder, coriander, cumin, turmeric, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and plenty of black pepper; (b) finely chop the tomatoes and put aside.

• To the cabbage, add the tomato paste-spice combination. Stir very ceaselessly for two minutes, coating the tomato paste into the cabbage. If issues begin to dry out, deglaze the pan with a splash of water. Add the recent tomatoes and prepare dinner for 4 to five minutes, or till the tomatoes have softened and nearly melted into the cabbage.

• Pour within the coconut milk, drained chickpeas, almond butter, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Modify the warmth to take care of a simmer and simmer (uncovered) for 15 to twenty minutes, stirring each jiffy to stop sticking. The curry will thicken because it cooks, so if you would like a looser texture, add ¼ to ½ cup water (60 to 120 mL).a. NOTE: I want simmering for 20 minutes, because it provides the substances sufficient time to masks the coconut taste, however you may style at quarter-hour and test.

• Take away from the warmth. Stir within the garam masala, a number of squeezes of lime juice, and the chopped cilantro. Season to style with salt or extra lime juice as desired. If potential, relaxation for five to 10 minutes to permit flavors to meld.

• Serve with cooked rice or flatbread. NOTE: leftovers will thicken significantly within the fridge, so you could need to skinny it out with some water on the range.

1. 1 small cabbage (1 ¼ to 1 ½ lbs / 570 to 680g) will usually yield this quantity of cabbage as soon as sliced/shredded.
2. I take advantage of Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt. In case you’re utilizing sea salt or desk salt, use much less salt, about half the quantity, then season to style. 
3. Kashmiri chili powder is a gentle Indian chili powder with a vivid purple shade and barely candy, smoky taste. Substitute: 1 ¾ tsps candy or scorching paprika and ¼ tsp cayenne pepper (or 2 tsps paprika and omit the cayenne).
4. That is about 2 medium Roma tomatoes. For a shortcut, you should use canned crushed tomatoes, however you’ll need to measure out about 8 oz / 230g.

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