Cabbage roll is a dish consisting of cooked cabbage leaves wrapped around a variety of fillings. Its origin is not known clearly, but It is common to the cuisines of the Balkans, Central, Northern, and Eastern Europe, Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Iran, as well as West Asia and Northern China, Egypt. The fillings do vary depending on the region where it is made – each region has its own fillings. Cabbage leaves are stuffed with the filling which are then baked, simmered, or steamed in a covered pot and generally eaten warm, often accompanied with a sauce. And the type of sauce varies – again depending on the region. It is a healthy food. We will see here how to make a very healthy Cabbage Roll along with a matching dipping sauce for the same.
Let us make the Dipping Sauce first
Ingredients for the dipping sauce:
Kashmiri Red Chilli – 6
Cashews – 8
Tomato Large – 2 (cut into quarters)
Onion – 1 (chopped)
Oil – 2 tbsp
Finely chopped Garlic – 1 tbsp
Dark Soya Sauce – 1 tsp
Sugar – 1 tsp
Salt to suit one’s taste
Lemon Juice – ½ tsp
Method:
Boil a cup of water. Add Red Chillies, Cashews, Tomato and Onion. Boil for 6 to 8 minutes. Drain the water. Allow to cool.
Remove the skin from the Tomatoes. Take all the above along with the skinned Tomatoes in a blender and blend it finely to a smooth paste..
Heat the Oil in a pan. Add chopped Garlic and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add the above paste and Soya sauce. Mix well. Add Salt. (Soya Sauce contains Salt and so, adjust Salt accordingly.)
Add little water. Cook for a minute. The spicy dipping sauce (for the Cabbage Rolls, which we are going) is ready.
Notes:
If you do not have the Kashmiri Chilli, you can use any Chilli, but deseed them before use to reduce the spiciness. Also, add 2 tbsp of grated Beet Root while boiling the Tomato, Onion etc to get a vibrant color.
You can use this dipping sauce for momos also.
Cabbage Roll:
Now, let us make the Cabbage Roll.
You have to start with blanching the Cabbage.
Separate the leaves of a cabbage. Take 7 to 8 of the leaves. Remove the hard vein from the leaves.
Boil a litre of water with little salt. Add the Cabbage leaves and cook them (about 75 percent) when the leaves lose their crunchiness. Remove and pat dry them.
We will make the stuffing for the Cabbage Roll now
Ingredients to make the stuffing:
Oil – 1 tbsp
Cumin Seeds- ½ tsp
Onion – 1 (finely chopped)
Green Chilli – 2 (finely chopped)
Ginger Garlic Paste – 1 tsp
Finely chopped or grated Cabbage – ½ cup
Finely chopped or grated Carrot – ½ cup
Finely chopped Capsicum – ¼ cup
Boiled Green Peas – ¼ cup
Turmeric Powder – 1/8 tsp
Cumin Seed Powder – ½ tsp
Red Chilli Powder – ½ tsp
Medium Sized Potato – 1 (boiled and mashed)
Cilantro – 3 tbsp
Lemon Juice – 1 tsp
Salt to suit one’s taste
Method:
Heat the Oil in a pan. Add Cumin Seeds. When it starts crackling, add the Onion and Green Chilli. Stir cook for a minute in low medium flame. Add Ginger Garlic Paste. Cook for another two minutes. Add the chopped Cabbage and Carrot. Mix well. Add Salt. Cook for another 2 to 3 minutes in low flame. Add Capsicum. And mix and continue cooking for another 2 minutes covered with a lid. Add the boiled Peas and 2 to 3 tbsp of water. Cover with the lid and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
Add the Turmeric Powder, Cumin Seed Powder and Red Chilli Powder. Adjust Salt. Mix well and simmer for a few minutes.
Add boiled and mashed Potatoes. Add Cilantro and Lemon Juice and mix well. The stuffing for Cabbage Roll is ready.
Divide the stuffing into equal portions. Place a portion of the stuffing into one of the blanched Cabbage Leaves. Fold and wrap well.
Now, we are going to cook the Cabbage Roll.
Ingredients to make the final cabbage roll:
Oil – 2 tbsp
Salt – a pinch
Red Chilli Powder – a pinch
Method:
Heat The Oil in a pan. Add a little Salt and Chilli Powder. Mix well. Place the Cabbage Rolls which we prepared above. Cook in low medium flame for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook all the sides well.
Serve hot with the dipping Sauce.
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