Kenyan Curried Cabbage

I am normally not very partial to cabbage (which is why I still had some kicking around from last week's CSA delivery).  But this recipe changed my mind.

Cabbage is now at the top of my list!

[Which is a very good thing, because I still have another whole head of it in my fridge.  The CSA stops for no woman.]

My father-in-law has high blood pressure.  He recently researched foods that could help him to control it.  At the top of his list was turmeric.  My in-laws are AMAZING cooks, but turmeric is not a spice they're used to using.  I promised to research some recipes for them.

It turns out that turmeric is a key ingredient in curry powder.  Curry is a staple food in my house, but my in-laws don't prefer "hot" foods, so I imagine that they don't eat curry very often.  I didn't want to suggest a curry that they wouldn't enjoy, so I went looking for something a little more unique.

I thought this recipe for Kenyan Curried Cabbage, adapted from Kayotic Kitchen, would appeal to them.  The recipe uses wheat flour and milk, both of which are off limits to my poor father-in-law.  However, I imagine that gluten-free flour, and soy or nut milk, would work equally well in place of the wheat and dairy here.

1 medium head of cabbage
1 medium onion
2 medium carrots
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup low-fat or skim milk plus 3 tablespoons of low-fat or skim milk
1 teaspoon curry powder (contains turmeric!)

Shred the cabbage, onion, and carrots.

[I should note that I had gorgeous blue/purple carrots from my CSA, but that any kind of carrot would work fine.]

Put the olive oil in a skillet and cook the onions for about two minutes over medium-high heat, until they begin to soften.  Add the cabbage and carrots.  Cook for an additional two minutes, until the cabbage begins to soften.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, 3 tablespoons of milk, and the curry powder.  Stir until the lumps are gone and it forms a smooth paste.

Add the paste to the onions, cabbage, and carrots.

Stir well to coat.  Cook for about one minute, and then add an additional 1/2 cup of milk (I measured the milk into the same bowl I used to make the paste, in order to grab the remaining curry powder).

Cook until the cabbage and onions reach your desired consistency.  For me, I like my veggies to be barely cooked.  The equivalent for a steak would be "still mooing."  I cooked my version until the cabbage and onions were softened on the outside, but retained a nearly "raw" crunch on the inside.  I achieved this in two to three additional minutes.

The result was sweet, spicy, creamy and crunchy, all at the same time.  Something about the taste and texture of this recipe made me really want to add raisins to it, so I sprinkled them over my individual serving.

Ahem.  Serving(s).  I went back for seconds, thirds, and fourths.

I hope you enjoy it, Bud, and that it has the intended effect!