This tasty Cabbage Curry is easy to make on your stovetop and it tastes incredible. In just 15-minutes you can made this delicious Curried Cabbage with edamame and serve it as a plant-based main meal or a quick and easy veggie side dish that will enhance whatever you’re serving.
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Cabbage is a wonderfully nutrient dense vegetable. It’s easy to use, loaded with fiber which helps with satiety and has a neutral flavor which makes it perfect to absorb the warm savory spices of curry.
I love that cabbage is inexpensive, stays good in the fridge for weeks, and is easy to find all year in your local grocery store. Store raw cabbage in your crisper drawer with a paper towel in a plastic bag for longer shelf life.
I also love to make roasted cabbage and vegan stuffed cabbage, but my go to cabbage recipe when I’m in a rush is either a simple cabbage salad or this quick and easy curried cabbage that only takes 15-minutes to make.
What kind of cabbage is best for curry?
- Green cabbage is best to chop and saute with curry. It holds its shape, and will tenderize as it cooks.
- Savoy or Napa cabbage will work, but they are a bit more watery and tend to get soggy.
- Red cabbage will hold its firmness and adopt the flavors of the curry, but it turns an odd color that put some people off.
Why you’ll love it
- Budget friendly
- Quick and easy to make. Ready in just 15-minutes
- Satisfying and filling
- Serve as a tasty veggie side dish or a plant-based main meal
- Warm, comforting, savory spices
- Low in calories, high in nutrition
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Cabbage: Green cabbage works best for cabbage curry. It’s loaded with fiber and water, making it satisfying and filling. Substitute with bok choy.
- Edamame: Always keep shelled edamame in your freezer for an easy way to add plant-based protein to dishes like this. Substitute with frozen peas.
- Curry powder: See the recipe card for easy combination of turmeric, cumin, ginger, dried mustard, black pepper and cinnamon if you don’t have a curry mix in your spice cabinet.
- Scallions: I like to use thinly sliced onions for garnish. You can also use shallot, fresh parsley or cilantro.
How to make it
Saute onions in water, olive oil or broth, until they begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle on curry powder, salt, pepper and minced garlic.
Cook, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds, until fragrant, adding 1-2 tablespoons water, as needed to prevent pan from becoming too dry.
Stir in cabbage to coat with spices. Pan will be crowded, until cabbage begins to shrink as it cooks.
Pour on ¼ cup water and stir. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir again, adding 1-2 tablespoons more water, as needed.
Add edamame beans, stirring until they’re heated through, about 2 minutes.
Garnish with sliced scallions. Add additional salt and pepper or crushed red pepper as desired to taste.
Debra’s Pro Tips
- Don’t let cabbage and spices stick to the bottom of the pan. Use water or broth, rather than more oil to keep pan from becoming too dry.
- Some curry powder is more spicy than others. Know your audience and their tolerance for spice. If your curry powder is on the spicier side, skip the black pepper. If you need more heat, sprinkle with crushed red pepper for garnish.
- If your curried cabbage comes out too spicy, serve with a side of vegan tzatziki to cool things down.
- Save time: a bag of coleslaw mix from the grocery will contain cabbage that’s already shredded, sometimes with carrots as well. Add as is.
Storage and Serving Suggestions
- Serve warm, or at room temperature.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5 days.
- Reheat over medium heat, until heated through. I’ve eaten leftovers cold and they were DELISH!!
- Freezing: I don’t recommend. The water content of cabbage means it changes texture when frozen and it will become soggy as it defrosts.
More Quick & Easy Side Dish Recipes
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📖 Recipe
15-Minute Stovetop Curried Cabbage
Equipment
- 12" Cast Iron Skillet
Ingredients
- ½ head green cabbage roughly chopped
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup water
- 1 cup frozen, shelled edamame
- 2 scallions thinly sliced
Instructions
- Prep: Roughly chop cabbage, dice onion, mince garlic and thinly slice scallions.
- Heat heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute onion in either olive oil, broth or water, until beginning to soften. About 2 minutes.
- Stir in garlic, curry powder, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds, until fragrant. If pan becomes dry, add 1-2 tablespoons water.
- Stir in cabbage until thoroughly coated with spice mixture.
- Mix in ¼ cup water. Cover and let steam for about 5 minutes.
- Remove lid. Stir in edamame and allow to cook for about 2 more minutes, until edamame is heated through and cabbage is tender. Again, add up to 2 tablespoons water, as needed if pan has become dry.
- Taste for seasoning, adding a pinch of crushed red pepper if not spicy enough for you. Sprinkle with scallions and serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
Note
The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.
Valerie
That looks yummy!
I’ve had good success shredding cabbage lightning-fast by cutting it into hunk sand then using the slicing blade of my food processor. For whatever that’s worth!
Debra Klein
Yes! Using a food processor disk helps so much for prep in this recipe. I find slicing/chopping meditative so I like to take the time to do it by hand, but when I’m in a hurry the food processor definitely saves time.
Valerie
Slicing *disk*, that is!