Stir-Fried Cabbage with Fennel Seeds

To go with my pork vindaloo, I've decided to go all madhur jaffrey by cooking her stir-fried cabbage with fennel seeds. It's not a dish that you see and go WOW!! However, I would say that this is a homely dish that you eat and reminds you of home. Another advantage about cooking this dish is, you cram incredible flavour into this stir fried cabbage in such a short time.

This recipe is from Madhur Jaffrey's Quick & Easy Indian Cooking and its name definitely says it all for this easy peasy vegetable dish.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds green cabbage (half a large head)

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

1 medium-large onion

1 teaspoon salt

1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon garam masala

Method:

1. Remove the coarse outer leaves of the cabbage. Cut the cabbage into half, core the middle and cut it lengthwise into fine, long shreds. You can use a mandoline for this as well.
2. Put oil in a wide and nonstick pan and set over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, put in the cumin, fennel and sesame seeds. As soon as the sesame seeds start to pop, put in the onion. Stir and fry for about 3 to 4 minutes or until the onion has browned a bit.
3. Put in the cabbage. Stir and fry for about 6 minutes or until the cabbage has browned somewhat.
4. Put in the salt and cayenne pepper. Turn down the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring now and then, for another 7 to 8 minutes or until the onions appear caramelized and soft.
5. Add the lemon juice and garam masala. Stir to mix. Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly.

To enhance the flavour of this cabbage dish, I would add 1 to 1.5 tsp turmeric powder. This goes well with any curry dish.

I'm submitting this post to I Heart Cooking Club for September Potluck.

I'm also submitting my post to Cook-Your-Books#16 organized by Joyce of kitchen flavours.