Indian Cabbage Soup
Try this great twist on a comfort-food favourite.
One of my very favourite foods is soup! It’s so versatile and a true testament to creating magic from whatever vegetables you find in the fridge. Spice up this recipe, keep it vegan, or add shredded chicken and a dollop of Greek yogurt on top — there are so many ways to enjoy this amazing dish!
Ingredients:
8 cups chicken broth
8 oz chicken, diced or shredded (optional); raw or cooked
4 cups rough chopped cabbage
1.5 cups potato, peeled and cubed
1/2 medium onion, chopped
2 parsnips, peeled and shredded
1 cup carrots, peeled and shredded
1 tsp cumin
1.5 tsp curry powder
1.5 tsp garam masala
1.5 tsp ginger (dried flakes)
4 cloves garlic, minced
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt/pepper to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped cilantro or parsley to taste (optional)
Directions:
(Note: This recipe makes a medium-spice level dish. See notes below for a mild version.)
1. In a stockpot add 2 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 medium chopped onion, and 4 minced garlic cloves. Stir occasionally until softened for 5-7 min on medium heat.
2. Add in 1.5 tsp dried ginger flakes, 1.5 cups of peeled and cubed potatoes, and 4 cups of roughly chopped cabbage . Stir occasionally and sauté until potatoes are fork tender and cabbage begins to soften (~5 min).
3. Add in half of shredded carrot/parsnip mixture (1 parsnip, 1/2 cup carrots). Reserve other half.
4. Add in all spices and mix thoroughly. (1 tsp cumin, 1.5 tsp curry powder, 1.5 tsp garam masala).
5. Add in 8 cups of chicken broth, lemon zest, and lemon juice and mix completely.
6. Bring heat up to a med/high boil and stir continuously until potatoes and cabbage have completely softened. (~5-10min) Reduce heat to low.
7. Transfer half of the vegetables to a blender (along with a few spoonfuls of liquid) and pulse/blend just until smooth. (Be careful of pressure built with contents under heat— fill no more than half your blender at a time and place a kitchen towel over the lid in case of spurting.) Leave a portion of vegetables unblended.
8. Add purée back to stockpot along with reserved shredded carrots/parsnips and mix thoroughly.
9. Add 8oz of diced chicken (optional).
10. Bring back to a medium boil until chicken is thoroughly cooked (~5-7 min) and/or until blended portion is reintegrated back into mixture.
11. Simmer on low and stir occasionally until ready to serve.
12. Stir in 1/2 cup chopped cilantro (optional) to taste and top with a spoonful of sour cream/Greek yogurt and serve.
Serve as side or as a main meal with naan, samosas or another Indian favourite.
Serves 6
Notes:
This recipe can be made vegan by replacing chicken broth with vegetable and omitting the chicken and sour cream/Greek yogurt from the recipe.
For a milder version reduce each of the spice portions by half.
