Cabbage Curry Recipe (cabbage sabzi)

Name: Cabbage Curry Recipe ( cabbage sabzi)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: ½ Red Onion finely chopped; 2 tbsp Ginger grated; 4-5 Garlic cloves minced; 2 tbsp Vegetable oil; 2 tsp Cumin seeds; 1 tsp Turmeric; 1 tsp Salt; ¼ Red Chili powder; 1 tsp Garam masala/ curry powder; 1 tsp coriander powder (optional); 2 tbsp Tomato paste; 3 cups cabbage chopped; 1 cup green peas

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This North Indian-style cabbage curry recipe makes a perfect weekday meal. It is easy to prep and quick to cook. Whether you like tender, melt-in-mouth cabbage or crispy cabbage, you can adapt this recipe to your taste. Spiced with the basic Indian spices and the subtle tang of tomato, this cabbage sabzi ( Patta gobhi ki sabzi) will become your staple cabbage recipe.

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Why will you love this recipe?
🥘 Ingredients required for making cabbage curry
🔪 How to make cabbage curry recipes
💭 Recipe tips for Indian Cabbage Curry
❓Frequently Asked Questions
Suggested recipes
📝 Recipe Card
Cabbage Curry Recipe ( cabbage sabzi)
📋 Nutrition facts

Patta gobhi in Hindi means cabbage and sabzi is the Indian word for dry curry.

This recipe is a North Indian style cabbage curry recipe that has added peas in it. This is one of my favorite Indian recipes for cabbage.

You can add peas, potatoes, carrots, and even rice grains to the cabbage curry recipe to make it your own. In an Indian household, a dry curry like this is always made with dal recipes.

It is served with roti, naan, or paratha.

Why will you love this recipe?

Easy, quick, and approachable recipe. This recipe is very easy and uses the simple ingredients that are already there in your Indian pantry. Just follow the simple steps.
One pot recipe. You can make this on weekdays. It does not require too much prep or work. It is simply one pot recipe.
Vegan. Like many Indian recipes, this one is an inherently vegan recipe.
Gluten-free recipe. If you have a gluten allergy, this cabbage sabzi is a recipe for you. You can add some gravy in form of coconut cream or yogurt and enjoy this with steamed rice.
Cabbage peas sabzi. This is a cabbage curry that is made by mixing peas in it. Hence the name.

🥘 Ingredients required for making cabbage curry

Cabbage

Green cabbage is the first and natural choice for making cabbage curry. But you can also use red cabbage for this recipe. You can also use savoy cabbage, but I would not recommend using napa cabbage for making curry cabbage recipes. This one is a white cabbage curry recipe.

Green peas

I have added green peas to this patta gobhi ki sabzi. In North India, we often add something to our cabbage sabzi. Peas and potatoes are the most commonly used vegetables.

You can use fresh or frozen peas whichever is available to you.

Red Onion

I used half of a large red onion. If you have a medium-sized onion, use the whole onion. The key is to chop it very finely. The onion will sweat and melt into the curry on cooking. It gives flavor and body to the sauce/ masala of the sabzi ( curry).

Red onion or shallots works best for Indian curry recipes, and this cabbage recipe is no exception. But if you cannot find them in your grocery store, go for yellow onions.

Ginger and garlic

Ginger and garlic are the base flavoring for our cabbage curry recipe. I like to mince the garlic and grate the ginger. I use fresh flavors in my recipes, but you can go for store-bought ginger garlic paste. Many people make ginger garlic paste at home. Use whatever you like.

Tomato Paste

Please do not replace tomato paste with tomato puree. You will need to increase the amount if you use tomato puree or canned diced tomatoes. Tomato paste is denser and more concentrated. Two tablespoons give enough richness to your curry. To replace it, you can use:

3 Ripe medium-sized tomatoes (diced)
1 cup of canned diced tomato
1 cup tomato puree

North Indian style cabbage sabzi prepared and served in an elegant skillet

Vegetable oil

Stick to the vegetable oil of your choice. You can use avocado oil or canola oil.

Spices

Cumin seeds. 2 teaspoon cumin seeds are a must in the curry recipe. If you do not have it, just omit it and replace it with cumin powder. Add cumin powder with the chopped herbs when the curry is ready. If you do not have any of this, replace one teaspoon of cumin seeds with black mustard seeds.
Coriander powder. The dry coriander seeds are ground into powdered form. I like to grind them at home and store them in an airtight container.

Garam masala is a mix of spices that is very generic in Indian dishes. You can use the store-bought or homemade mix of dry spices here. Another substitute for garam masala is curry powder.
Turmeric. No curry is possible without turmeric powder.
Salt and red chili powder. Adjust them according to your taste and preferences.

🔪 How to make cabbage curry recipes

Step 1 Prep the ingredients

Images showing preparations like chopping onions, cabbage etc

Start by chopping the cabbage. Wash it, and set it aside.

Chop the onion finely, mince garlic, and grated ginger. Pull out all the spices and keep them at a hand's distance. While preparing curry tadka or masala, you must be quick with adding the dry spices. They are sheer powders and burn very quickly. Also, keep a glass of water close.

Step 2 Preparing masala for cabbage curry

images showing making masala for cabbage recipe

In a skillet heat oil. And add cumin seeds. When the seeds start to sizzle add chopped onions, ginger, and garlic. Sauté them at medium heat. When they turn golden, add all the dry spices. First, reduce the heat to low, and then start by adding turmeric, chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala, and salt. Give them a quick stir and add 2-3 tablespoons of water.

Let the spices cook for a minute and then add tomato paste. Stir and cook the tomato paste for 2 minutes.

step by step images for making cabbage sabzi

When the masala starts to leave oil, it is ready for the veggies.

Step 3 Adding and cooking cabbage

Now add peas and mix well. Add the chopped cabbage and then use a ladle to gently coat the cabbage with the masala. Now cover the skillet and let the cabbage curry cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes.

Adjust the cooking time depending on how you like your cabbage. If you want the cabbage curry to be crunchy, just cook enough to get rid of the rawness and turn off the flame when the cabbage leaves are still crunchy. But if you like buttery tender cabbage, cook enough till that stage is reached. It took me 7 minutes at medium flame.

Garnish with scallions, or cilantro and serve hot with roti.

image showing folding chopped cabbage in prepared spices or masala

How to make cabbage curry recipe in an Instant pot

To make this recipe in an instant pot also. Just use the sauté mode at medium heat for 15 minutes and follow the recipe as such from above.

How to serve cabbage curry?

This cabbage curry recipe makes a great dinner as well as a lunch meal. Serve it alongside flatbreads like naan, pita bread, roti, or paratha. Alongside serve some salad and raita. And there, you have a delicious Indian meal at your disposal.

Other variations of cabbage curry

Wondering how else we Indians enjoy our cabbage? The other Indian recipes with cabbage that you can enjoy are as follows.

Cabbage curry with coconut milk. This is more of a south Indian-inspired recipe for cabbage curry where coconut milk is added to give it some gravy base.

Cabbage potato curry. Add potatoes with peas to the cabbage curry recipe. The patta gobhi aloo ki sabzi is another popular version of cabbage sabzi throughout northern India.

Cabbage poriyal. It is a south Indian of cabbage curry (Andhra style), where mustard seeds are used instead of cumin seeds and freshly grated coconut shreds are added to the curry.

Indian cabbage recipe prepared and served

🫙 Storage notes

Refrigerate the leftover cabbage curry in an airtight container for 2-4 days. For prolonged storage, freeze in a freezer-safe container for about 2 weeks.

To thaw the frozen curry, defrost it in a microwave, or thaw it overnight in the fridge. You can also let it self-thaw by leaving it at room temperature for 3-4 hours.

💭 Recipe tips for Indian Cabbage Curry

Wash the cabbage after chopping and let it dry in a colander. Make it dry and avoid putting any additional water in the sabzi as the cabbage will have enough water to cook itself.
If you are new to Indian cooking, then, measure the spices and have them ready in a small bowl. When we add powdered spices to the pan, they cook super-fast, so have some water ready to bring down the temperature instantly.
Replace red onion with shallots or yellow onions.
Replace tomato paste with 3 medium-sized tomatoes.
Adjust the cooking time according to your taste.
If you want to keep your cabbage super crispy, then add salt at the end.
There is no need for any additional water for cooking the cabbage. It is best to cook cabbage covered on low heat. The moisture released by the cabbage is enough to cook itself.
Add chopped potatoes or carrots to replace or supplement peas.
If you want the cabbage curry to be crunchy, just cook enough to get rid of the rawness and turn off the flame when the cabbage leaves are still crunchy. But if you like buttery tender cabbage, cook enough till that stage is reached. It took me 7 minutes at the low-medium flame.

❓Frequently Asked Questions

What other veggies can I add to this cabbage curry recipe?

You can add green peas, chopped carrots, red peppers, tomatoes, radish, and shredded coconut to your carrot recipes. All these veggies go great in the cabbage stir fry and cabbage curry recipes.

Do you need to brine cabbage before cooking?

There is no need to brine the cabbage before making the cabbage curry. All you need to do is chop it, wash, and dry it nicely.

Can I use red/ purple cabbage for this recipe?

Yes, you can use red cabbage for this recipe. It will be different in color but also more earthy in flavor. As red cabbage has a relatively deeper flavor than its green counterpart.

What can I do with a lot of cabbage?

Well, if you have a lot of cabbage, you can shred and use it to make numerous cabbage recipes. Use it to fill dumplings, make Coleslaw, cabbage stir fry, cabbage rolls, etc. You can brine and can it or make sauerkraut.

Suggested recipes

A few more vegetarian Indian recipes that might interest you are as follows:

Some Indian cuisine-inspired air fryer recipes:

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Till then,

Make it delicious and quick!

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