Cabbage Fried Rice | Indian Style Fried Rice Using Purple Cabbage | Gluten Free and Vegan

Hi Supermoms,

There are some days when I have no idea what I am going to cook for lunch . It does happen to all of us , right?

 You cook three meals a day and at times, it becomes monotonous. Last week, I had one such day. I was not in the best of my health and I had skipped a trip to the vegetable market. There were very few vegetables in my refrigerator and that left me with fewer options. I wanted to make something different , frankly , only  to cheer me up. Purple cabbage gave me the required motivation.  I had actually bought them to use as a serving bowl for my Chilli Cheese Idlies . I used  a few leaves for that purpose and was still left with a large portion of the cabbage. 

I could have made a simple stir fry of the cabbage but then I had to make a sambar or rasam to accompany it. I was in no mood to make sambar.  I wanted to make off a one pot meal . And this was how this recipe was born. Simple and  tasty fried rice ( my family called it Purple Biryani 😀). 

I used the seasonal green and red chillies( that I had bought to make pickle) and that added to the flavours. I also cooked it in an open pot. If you like, you can cook the basmati rice separately and add it to the cabbage mixture. But I cooked the rice along with spices so that it is more flavourful. 

I used ghee for tempering the whole spices, but you can use oil if you are vegan. You can use regular cabbage too. Before you start chopping /shredding cabbage, you can soak basmati rice as this speeds up the cooking . 

Cabbage Fried Rice:

Preparation time : 30 minutes

Cooking time : 25 minutes

Serves : 4

1 cup = 250 ml cup

Note : You can use 5-6 green chillies( finely chopped) and 1 dry red chilli ( finely chopped)  if you do not have the long variety of chillies. Also, if you are cooking in open pot , you will need 1/2 cup more water to cook rice. 

Ingredients :

2 cups Basmati rice ( soaked in 2 cups water for 30 minutes)

1 small purple cabbage ( shredded)

1/2 cup fresh peas (optional)

1 long green chilli ( de-seeded and finely chopped)

1 long red chilli ( finely chopped)

3 garlic pods ( grated or finely chopped)

1/2 " ginger ( finely chopped)

1 onion ( sliced thinly , optional)

salt to taste

For tempering :

1 tablespoon ghee ( or oil, if you are vegan)

1 bay leaf

2 cloves

2-3 pieces blackstone flower/ kalpasi/Dagad phool

1/2" cinnamon stick

1 black cardamom/badi elaichi

1 teaspoon fennel seeds 

1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns  ( coarsely crush using mortar and pestle) 

For garnish ( optional) :

Chef tip : You can use fresh herbs or caramelised onions also 

1 teaspoon oil or ghee

10 cashew nuts 

Method :

1. In a heavy bottom pan, add ghee or oil and add all the whole spices and fry till they turn fragrant. 

Chef tip : If you do not have whole spices, you can add 1 teaspoon of biryani masala or garam masala after you add cabbage . 

2. Add ginger , garlic and green chillies and fry till they brown.

Chef tip : Keep stirring so that they do not burn and brown uniformly.

3. Add purple cabbage ( peas if you are using) , salt and cook for 5-7 minutes over medium flame. 

4. Add basmati rice along with the water .

5. Add salt and cook till the rice is soft but not mushy.

6. Garnish with roasted cashew nuts , herbs or fried onions.

Chef tip : You can also garnish with all the above. 

Delicious Cabbage Fried Rice is now ready. It not only cheered me up but also energised  me cook all the below dishes. 

Happy Cooking !

With love,

Masterchefmom