Thinly sliced cabbage stir-fried on high heat in a tempering of mustard seeds and seasoned with Indian spices is healthy, quick, and easy to prepare. This Gujarati stir-fried cabbage is a staple side dish in every household in western India.
Gujarati Kobij (cabbage) Sambharo
Thinly sliced cabbage stir-fried on high heat just until it absorbs all the wonderful Indian spice without losing its crunch. This side dish is a favorite side dish with a Gujarati meal.
My Ammi (mother) always made Patta Gobi (cabbage) during the summer a lot. This recipe is her favorite side dish to serve with Dal Chawal (plain rice and lentil).
Gujarati sambharo is cooked with different vegetables. Cabbage with potatoes and bell pepper is my favorite. The combination of cabbage, potatoes, and pepper with Indian tempering tastes phenomenal.
What's in This Gujarati Stir-Fried Cabbage?
A handful of simple spices, cabbage, potato, and bell pepper is all you need to cook this delicious Gujarati cabbage recipe. Indian spices can be purchased online or at a local South Asian shop.
Produce:
- Cabbage: any variety of cabbage is great for this recipe. I like to use regular green cabbage from local grocery stores. I can totally see this recipe turning out great with red cabbage, or Napa cabbage as well.
- Potato: I have always used ¼-inch thick julienned russet potatoes for this recipe. Any other varieties of potatoes would work fine as well.
- Bell Pepper: green bell pepper gives a great crunch to this recipe. It is completely optional.
Condiment & Spices:
- Olive Oil: I am using olive oil for this recipe but any mild cooking oil should work fine. We are only using a small amount of oil to season and temper the cabbage.
- Mustard Seeds: The best part of this recipe is mustard seed tempering. Nutty flavors of mustard seeds give such nice flavors to this recipe.
- Cumin Seeds: I love using cumin seeds in the tempering for cabbage sambharo. It is completely optional.
- Cumin-Coriander Powder: the sweetness of coriander powder and earthy cumin powder gives great flavors to all Indian recipes. It can be purchased separately from any major grocery store.
- Turmeric: turmeric powder is a must-have ingredient for this and all Indian recipes.
- Whole Dried Red Chili: completely optional. Dried red chili gives a great chili flavor to the oil while tempering. You may discard them after tempering if you don't want to eat them.
- Salt: I am using pink Himalayan salt. Please adjust the salt according to your taste preference.
How to Stir Fry Indian Cabbage?
- Thinly slice cabbage, potatoes, and bell pepper.
- Heat oil in a large skillet or wok on high heat. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and whole chilies to hot oil.
- Once mustard seeds start to pop, add potatoes. Stir to coat the potatoes in oil tempering. Let potatoes cook on high heat for 2 minutes without stirring.
- Stir potatoes and cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes or until fully cooked.
- Add julienned green bell pepper. Stir and continue cooking on high heat for about 1 minute.
- Once the peppers start to change color. Quickly add all the thinly sliced cabbage to the wok.
- Season the cabbage with turmeric powder, ground cumin & coriander, and salt. Stir well to coat the seasoning.
- Stir and continue to cook cabbage for 2 minutes on high heat. Turn the heat off and set the stir-fried cabbage aside.
Tip for Gujarati Stir-Fried Cabbage
- Vegetables should stay crispy without losing their nutrients in Gujarati Sambharo. Wash all vegetables before thinly slicing them for stir-fries.
- Wash the head of the cabbage and pat dry it completely before thinly slicing it. Washing the cabbage after slicing will release too much moisture while cooking causing mushy cabbage.
- Substitute potatoes with julienned carrots for low-calorie stir fry.
- Use a large wok or a skillet for stir-frying cabbage. Cabbage requires good space to wilt and it is easier to stir to coat the seasoning well in a large wok.
How to Serve Indian Cabbage
I love serving Gujarati stir-fried cabbage with Indian curry recipes like Dal and plain rice. It can be eaten as a salad or served as a side dish to your favorite meal.
Storage Tips
- To Store: Stir-fried cabbage stays great in the refrigerator for up to one week. Store the leftovers in an airtight container.
- To Reheat: stir fry the leftover cabbage in a skillet or wok on the stovetop over medium heat while stirring continuously to prevent the burn. It should take about 1 to 2 minutes to reheat the cabbage on the stovetop.
- To Freeze: stir-fried cabbage can be stored in the freezer for up to a month in an airtight container or a ziplock bag. Thaw overnight for easy reheating. The taste and texture of reheated frozen stir fry are not as pleasant as freshly cooked :).
More Indian Stir Fry Recipes
Indian Meat & Fish Curry Recipes
Gujarati Stir-Fried Cabbage Recipe (Sambharo)
Savory, healthy, quick and easy Gujarati stir-fried cabbage. This Indian spiced cabbage recipe makes a great meal, or a side dish.
Ingredients
- 1 head of cabbage , remove brown or bad leaves
- 1 medium russet potato , washed and peeled
- 1 medium green bell pepper , or yellow or red bell pepper
- 2 tablespoons oil , or a generous drizzle
Spices
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 whole dried red chili , or ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Himalayan salt , or to taste
Garnish
- 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro , optional
Instructions
- Throughly wash the head of the cabbage, potatoes, and bell pepper under running water. Quarter the head of the cabbage and remove the hard core.
- Thinly slice quartered cabbage like coleslaw and julliene potato and pepper. If needed, pat dry the julliened potato and pepper with a paper towel to dry excess moisture. Set the vegetables aside.
- Heat oil in a large skillet or wok on high heat. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and whole chilies to hot oil.
- Once mustard seeds start to pop, add julliened potatoes. Stir to coat the potatoes in oil tempering. Let potatoes cook over high heat for 2 minutes without stirring.
- Stir potatoes and continue to cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes or until fully cooked. Add julienned green bell pepper. Stir and continue cooking on high heat for about 1 minute.
- Now quickly add all the thinly sliced cabbage, ground spices and salt to the wok.
- Stir well to coat and season the cabbage evenly. Continue to cook on high heat while stirring continuously for about 2 minutes.
- Turn the heat off and set the stir-fried cabbage aside. Garnish with chopped cilantro.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 5g ,Calories: 131kcal ,Carbohydrates: 18.4g ,Protein: 3.2g ,Fat: 6g ,Saturated Fat: 0.8g ,Sodium: 494mg ,Potassium: 486mg ,Fiber: 4.7g ,Sugar: 6.1g ,Calcium: 71mg ,Iron: 2mg
Nutrition information is sourced from a third-party application and should be considered as approximate figures for reference purposes only.
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Rajal says
I am Gujarati and have never ever had Sambharo with potato.
FeastwithSafiya says
I am born and raised in Gujarat and always had Sambharo with potatoes. 😉
Gajar ne badle bateta recipe ma add karo. Khub saras lage che. Try it, it tastes great!