An everyday peanut curry with cabbage and carrots

A convenient curry recipe that combines humble cabbage and carrots with rich peanut butter and coconut milk. A dash of sriracha, lime juice and soy sauce add excitement.

We get a weekly vegetable delivery box and in winter it can feel like the only regional products available to us are cabbage and carrots (...and beetroots and apples). This recipe is a perfect use of those seemingly boring vegetables, and they become exciting thanks to the peanut butter, soy sauce and sriracha.

I like to serve curries with bulgur (cracked wheat) rather than with rice: it is quite nutritious in terms of fibre, protein and iron, and bulgur is more local for us here in northern Germany. This time we had fancy French Camargue red rice at home though, which I prefer even more.

Vegan peanut butter curry with cabbage and carrots

(4-5 servings)
1-2 tbsp oil suitable for frying
2 medium carrots
1/2 head of a smallish cabbage (ca 500 grams)
1 tin coconut milk + half tin of water
2 tbsp (heaped) smooth peanut butter
2 tbsp soy sauce (or to taste)
1 1/2 tbsp lime juice (just shy of one lime)
ca. 1 tsp sriracha sauce (or to taste)
(If you don't have sriracha, try adding 1 tsp paprika, ½ tsp cayenne pepper, a pinch chilli flakes and 1 tbsp tomato puree instead)

When using a slow cooking wild rice variety it should go on the stove before you start the sauce.

Rinse and peel your carrots, and quickly rinse again before cutting them into circa 1 mm thick slices.

Start preparing your cabbage by breaking off possible dry or damaged outer leaves. Make a cut at the base and halve it. Halve the piece you will be using and rinse and drain the quarters well before carefully cutting out the core. Slice the cabbage thinly.

Make sure to choose a pot big enough to fit all the uncooked cabbage.

Add oil before you turn the heat on, then add cabbage and carrots. They take 10–15 minutes to cook over medium heat – alternate between stirring and letting them simmer under a lid.

Once you deem the cabbage braised to your liking (or just under), add coconut milk and a half tin of water used to rinse the tin with. Then stir in the peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice and sriracha. Cook for maybe five minutes until the sauce starts to thicken. Taste. (I always end up adding more soy sauce and more sriracha.)

Serve with rice, bulgur or rice noodles, maybe even potatoes.

The recipe is very much inspired by this recipe for vegan stir-fried cabbage from The Kitchn.