Curry leaves play an important role in Indian cuisine, especially in South Indian food. There is just no substitute for curry leaves, especially fresh ones. Their highly aromatic fragrance is like no other. Fresh curry leaves are usually available in all Indian grocery stores and South Asian markets. I highly urge you to venture out to your local Indian market and explore all the different and wonderfully exotic spices, herbs, daals, spice mixtures, fruits and vegetables. Don’t be afraid to experiment and let your creative culinary juices flow!
INDIAN CABBAGE SALAD
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
4 cups of cabbage, finely shredded
2 cups of carrots, finely shredded
2 medium tomatoes, diced
1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and diced (or red bell pepper is fine)
6 small green chilies, cut in half lengthwise
½ cup of peanuts (unsalted & dry roasted)
juice of 2 lemons, freshly squeezed (or limes)
½ tsp black mustard seeds
6 fresh curry leaves (kadi patta)
pinch of asafetida (hing)
2 tbsp vegetable oil
salt and pepper to taste
½ cup cilantro leaves, finely chopped
METHOD:
In a large mixing bowl, combine the cabbage, carrots, green bell peppers and tomatoes. Gently toss to combine all the ingredients and set aside until needed.
Freshly toasted peanuts are absolutely delicious and you can do this right on your stove top very easily. In a dry skillet heated on medium low, add the unsalted peanuts. Shake the pan frequently so the peanuts will not burn and after 4-5 minutes, you will be able to smell the unmistakable aroma of freshly toasted peanuts. Remove immediately from the pan and set aside to cool until needed.
In a small sauce pan on medium high heat, add the oil. When the oil is almost to the point of smoking, add the mustard seeds. Do this very carefully because as the mustard seeds hit the hot oil, they will splatter and pop tremendously. After the popping subsides, reduce the heat to low and carefully add the green chilies, asafetida and curry leaves. After 10-15 seconds, turn off the heat completely and carefully add this very hot oil mixture to the cabbage, carrots, green bell peppers and tomatoes. Stir gently and add the lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix well and add the toasted peanuts and cilantro leaves. Serve immediately.
VARIATIONS:
You could also make this recipe using kohlrabi, it's equally delicious.
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