Coconut Cabbage with Chiles and Green Peas

Name: Coconut Cabbage with Chiles and Green Peas (Thenga Muttaikose)
Yield: Serves 6
Cuisine: India
Ingredients: 4 fresh green Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, stems removed; 1 cup shredded fresh coconut; or ½ cup shredded dried unsweetened coconut, reconstituted (see Note); 2 tablespoons canola oil; 1 teaspoon black or yellow mustard seeds; 1 tablespoon skinned split black lentils (cream-colored in this form, urad dal), picked over for stones; 4 cups shredded cabbage (see Tip; 2 cups frozen green peas (no need to thaw); 2 teaspoons coarse kosher or sea salt; 12 medium-size to large fresh curry leaves

Thenga Muttaikose

Preparation info

Serves
6

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

660 Curries

By Raghavan Iyer

Published 2008

About

A side dish like this one was always popular in my mother’s kitchen because cabbage was one of very few vegetables that were liked by everyone in the family. Cooked cabbage may elicit strong opinions pro or con in this country, but my six-year-old son loves it—so I know he is carrying on the family preferences.

Ingredients

1 cup shredded fresh coconut; or ½ cup shredded dried unsweetened coconut, reconstituted (see Note)

Asia
India
Side dish
Spicy
Vegan
Gluten-free

Method

Pour 1 cup water into a blender jar, and add the coconut and chiles. Puree, scraping the inside of the jar as needed, to make a creamy-white, thin sauce with flecks of green.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the mustard seeds, cover the pan, and