Cabbage Dumplings in an Anti-Inflammatory Broth (ve, gf)

Now that Spring is close (yay!) I find myself craving light yet nutrient-dense foods. Unlike regular dumplings, which are wrapped in dough, I used cabbage leaves to contain a delicious veggie filling. This, not only eliminates some of the inflammation associated with the consumption of certain flours, it makes the whole recipe much quicker.
The broth is highly anti-inflammatory thanks to galangal, ginger, lemongrass and garlic. All chosen to make this recipe extra soothing and supportive of your immune system and cell repair process.

• Ingredients

  • 3cm fresh ginger

  • 1 lemongrass stalk

  • a large piece (about 8cm) of fresh galangal

  • 2 lime leaves

  • 1 garlic clove

  • salt

  • 1bsp olive oil

  • 2 spring onions

  • 1 carrot

  • 2 portobello mushrooms

  • 1/3 of a broccoli head

  • 1tbsp sesame seeds

  • 1tbsp coriander

  • 1tbsp tamari

  • 1tsp mirin

  • 1tsp rice wine vinegar

  • 4 cabbage leaves (I used Savoy)

• Method

  1. Start by preparing the broth; boil 1litre of filtered water. Slice the ginger, bash the lemongrass stalk and garlic clove and chop the galangal into 2cm pieces. Add all to a medium pan together with the lime leaves. Add the water and bring to a simmer. Season with salt to taste (but try not to overdo it).

  2. For the cabbage dumplings; slice the spring onions, peel and grate the carrot, finely chop he mushrooms and broccoli.

  3. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and add all the veg. Sautée for a few minutes until the veg are cooked and season with the tamari, mirin and rice wine vinegar. Add the sesame seeds and chopped coriander and stir to combine.

  4. In the meantime, boil the cabbage leave in the broth for 4 minutes or until soft. Remove from the broth and pat dry with some kitchen paper.

  5. To one cabbage leave, add 2tbsp of the veg mixture. Fold the top and bottom of the leaf followed by the sides as if you’re wrapping a gift. Top with another cabbage leave to cover the ends of the first one and fold again. Keep everything in place using a toothpick. Repeat the process for your second dumpling.

  6. Serve the broth in a shallow bowl and add the dumplings in.

Hope you enjoy it and don’t forget to tag me on Instagram or Facebook so I can see your recreations.