Battered and Fried Cabbage with Crispy Seeds and Lemon

Name: Battered and Fried Cabbage with Crispy Seeds and Lemon
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: ¼ head green cabbage; Vegetable oil or olive oil, for deep-frying; ½ cup cornstarch; ½ cup all-purpose flour; 1 cup sparkling water; ¼ cup poppy seeds; 1 teaspoon fennel seeds; 1 teaspoon cumin seeds; 1 teaspoon coriander seeds; Dried chile flakes; Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper; ½ lemon

5 steps

Looking for an appetizer that’s out of the ordinary? Spicy, crunchy leaves of cabbage cooked tempura-style are fantastic with drinks and friends. Cooking them is a bit of a performance piece for your guests, however, because you need to eat these as soon as they’re out of the pan. Serve them with a simple squeeze of lemon, or for a more substantial preparation, serve with a bowl of Tonnato for dipping. Fr Six Seasons Cookbook

Updated at: Fri, 12 Jan 2024 20:26:11 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Great

Glycemic Index

Moderate

Glycemic Load

High

Nutrition per serving

Calories179.2 kcal (9%)

Total Fat4.3 g (6%)

Carbs31.9 g (12%)

Sugars1.8 g (2%)

Protein4 g (8%)

Sodium215 mg (11%)

Fiber3.9 g (14%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

4 servings

0.25 headgreen cabbage

Vegetable oil

or olive oil, for deep-frying

½ cupcornstarch

½ cupall purpose flour

1 cupsparkling water

¼ cuppoppy seeds

1 teaspoonfennel seeds

1 teaspooncumin seeds

1 teaspooncoriander seeds

Dried chile flakes

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

0.5lemon

Instructions

Step 1

Cut away the dense cabbage core with a sharp paring knife and separate the leaves; it’s fine that they are all different sizes, though you should tear any huge ones into smaller pieces. The cabbage leaves need to fit into your frying pot.

Step 2

Arrange a double layer of paper towels on a tray or baking sheet and set it near your stove. Pour 3 inches of oil (vegetable oil or a mix of olive and vegetable) into a saucepan, making sure there are at least 3 inches of headroom (because the oil may bubble up a bit during cooking, and you don’t want any spillovers—dangerous!). Slowly bring the oil up to 375°F on a thermometer. (Or fry a small piece of bread: When it takes 60 seconds to get nicely crisp and brown, but not burnt, your oil is just about right.)

Step 3

As the oil is heating, whisk together the cornstarch and flour in a bowl. Whisk in enough sparkling water to make a thin batter. Whisk in the poppy seeds, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, ¼ teaspoon chile flakes (or more, if you like things spicy), ½ teaspoon salt, and a bunch of twists of black pepper.

Step 4

When the oil is ready, dip a cabbage leaf into the batter, let the excess drip off, and then carefully immerse it in the hot oil. If there’s room in the pan for more than one leaf, fry more than one at a time, but don’t overcrowd the pan or the oil temperature may drop, making the coating greasy rather than crisp. Fry until the coating is puffed and very light golden (these will not get deeply colored). Transfer to the paper towels to drain and continue frying the rest of the cabbage.

Step 5

Once all the cabbage leaves are fried, turn off the heat under the oil and arrange the cabbage on a platter. Season with a bit more salt and a squeeze of lemon and serve right away.