Slice the cabbage finely with a thin slicer in a food processor or with a sharp knife. Take this cabbage in a microwave safe bowl and add little water. Cook this cabbage in a microwave oven on high power for 5 minutes. Stir with a spoon and microwave again on 30% power for 7 minutes. As we are using very little water, we need to cook in microwave for a longer time in 3 intervals. Stir once again and microwave again on 30% power for 5 minutes. Give standing time 5 minutes before removing it from the oven. After cooking the cabbage spread it in a plate to cool.

Take the coconut and cut it into small pieces. Grind the coconut pieces in a dry mixie to get grated coconut. Wash & clean green chilies & ginger and grind them to a coarse paste. Wash Curry leaves and chop them finely.

Take the cooked cabbage and remove excess water by pressing hard between your palms. Collect the water in a bowl and keep it in fridge as this can be used as vegetable stock.

Method:

Heat a pan and add oil to it. When oil is hot add Bengal gram, black gram and fry well. Fry till the seeds change color. Then add mustard seeds and cumin seeds and fry till the seeds splutter. Add the chopped curry leaves and coarsely ground chili-ginger paste and fry well. Add turmeric powder and mix once. Add the water removed cabbage to the pan and mix. Add salt, mix and cook for few seconds. Then add grated coconut and mix well. Transfer this curry to a serving bowl. Serve with hot rice and curd chilies as accompaniment.

Points To Remember:

Use very little water while cooking the cabbage. As the cabbage itself holds lot of water, cook in very little water to get less stock in the end. Sprinkle just few drops while cooking. If required we can add few more drops and cook the cabbage. As you have seen in the above movie clip, we have cooked the cabbage in 3 intervals by stirring and adding water when required.

Do not throw away the cabbage cooked water. We can make Rasam with this cabbage water or use it in any gravy dish. This stock contains vitamins so use it innovatively. If for any reasons you are throwing this cabbage water, throw it at a far off place as it smells bad.

While grinding the coconut in a mixie, ensure that the mixie jar is dry. When the mixie jar is dry you get finely grated coconut. When the mixie jar is wet, the coconut gratings get stuck to the wet jar and we will not get finely grated coconut.

One can use fried cashew nuts also in this dish for taste enhancement.