This crispy lime cabbage recipe is the full meal, truly. I was craving a piled-high bowl of my favorite veg (naturally) but I knew I couldn’t just eat a pan of crispy cabbage and call it dinner. That’s how this crispy lime cabbage and turmeric white bean mash came about. Yes, it’s beans again (collective sigh), but beans in a fun, new way! This meal is one of my best ways to get all the protein, carbs and fat you need in a lunch or dinner (plus vegetables!), but in a really easy and delicious bowl. For as many components as this bowl has, it’s surprisingly low-maintenance, and the textures and flavors you’ll get in return are insane. Take the time to prep this meal and you’ll understand where my obsession with cabbage comes from, it runs deep 😉
Table of contents
Ingredients you will need for this crispy lime cabbage and turmeric white bean mash
While there are a few ingredients here, the recipe process is very simple. Don’t be afraid by the amounts, it all comes together in perfect harmony 🙂
Ingredients for the crispy cabbage
- 1 small head of cabbage red or green, or a combination of the two!
- 1-2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lime for juicing
- Kosher salt to taste
What you need for the turmeric white bean mash
- 1/2 cup raw almonds
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 handful cilantro, rough stems removed
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1″ knob ginger sliced
- 1/2 tsp each of Aleppo pepper, cumin, red pepper flakes
- 1/2 heaping tsp ground turmeric
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 15 oz. can of white beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
For the crispy rice
- 1 cup short grain white rice, uncooked, sticky rice works best for this method
- Olive oil as needed
Optional garnish
- Fresh mint or basil
Let’s talk about the turmeric mash
The turmeric mash here is less of a smooth dip, and more of a chunky, mixable base for the crispy lime cabbage. It does the job of both a salad dressing and a hummus in one. When you mix this mash together with the crispy cabbage, the natural sweetness of the cabbage and juice from the lime melds together with the smooth mash and you get this natural dressing, while still having a very hearty component to the meal.
I like to enjoy the turmeric mash as a wide swipe at the bottom of your plate or bowl, but it also works amazingly well just piled on top. How you serve it is up to you, but the flavor will always be fantastic.
How do you make the turmeric white bean mash?
The other great part of the turmeric mash is that it is easy to make. You just need to prep the almonds for a few minutes, and then everything is an easy blend.
So begin by soaking the almonds in boiling hot water for 5 minutes. Add the nutritional yeast, cilantro, garlic, ginger, spices and apple cider vinegar to a food processor. Drain the almonds and add them to the food processor with an additional 1/2 cup of water. Pulse until roughly ground, then add the beans, season with salt and process until smooth. Set aside and start the other parts of the recipe!
The best way to make crispy cabbage
Crispy cabbage is one of my all-time favorite vegetables. Cabbage is naturally juicy and sweet, and it really doesn’t get the love it deserves. It’s so versatile. You can braise it, roast it, charr it on the grill, and of course, crisp it in the oven.
This crispy lime cabbage is really only crisp on the edges, and you allow the other half of the cabbage to stay soft and pliable. The best way to make this cabbage is to slice it thin, toss in olive oil and salt and roast at 400°F for 20-22 minutes, your oven will do the rest!
How to make the crispy rice for this crispy lime cabbage
It’s crispy on crispy – AKA a love story. The crispy rice here is very simple, you just add it to a pan with a good coating of olive oil and let it sizzle on medium heat, undisturbed, for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown. This will feel like a loooong time, but it’s worth it!
I’ve found only short-grain sticky rice works best for this application, so keep that in mind while adding it to this crispy lime cabbage bowl!
Looking for other plant-based dinners?
Here are a few that I’ve been loving!
Delicata Squash Cavatelli
Lemony Rice Salad with Winter Vegetables
Harissa-Simmered Artichokes on Toast
And that’s it for this crispy lime cabbage!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Equipment
Ingredients
For the crispy cabbage
- 1 small head of cabbage, red or green, or a combination of the two!
- 1-2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lime for juicing
- Kosher salt to taste
For the turmeric white bean mash
- 1/2 cup raw almonds
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 handful cilantro, rough stems removed
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1" knob ginger, sliced
- 1/2 tsp each of Aleppo pepper, cumin, red pepper flakes
- 1/2 heaping tsp ground turmeric
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 15 oz. can of white beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt , plus more to taste
For the crispy rice
- 1 cup short grain white rice, uncooked, sticky rice works best for this method
- Olive oil as needed
For garnish
- Fresh mint or basil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Thinly slice the cabbage and scatter it onto two baking sheets. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Toss to coat. Roast in the oven at 400°F for 20-22 minutes or until the edge pieces are golden brown and beginning to crisp.
- While the cabbage is roasting, begin cooking your rice according to package instructions. I like to use a rice cooker for this to keep everything simple.
- For the white bean mash, begin by soaking the almonds in boiling hot water for 5 minutes. Add the nutritional yeast, cilantro, garlic, ginger, spices and apple cider vinegar to a food processor. Drain the almonds and add them to the food processor with an additional 1/2 cup of water. Pulse until roughly ground, then add the beans, season with salt and process until smooth. Set aside.
- At this time the rice should be done. To make it crispy, put a sauté pan on medium heat and add a generous glug of olive oil. Add in the rice in one even layer and lightly smash it down. Cook, undisturbed for 5-7 minutes or until the rice is deeply golden on the bottom. Cut it into big chunks and remove from the pan.
- When the cabbage is done roasting, cover with a squeeze of lime juice and toss.
- To plate, start with a scoop of the turmeric mash, add a pile of the lime cabbage and then break the crispy rice over top. Sprinkle with chopped mint or basil and enjoy!
Comments
Looooove everything you make. Made many of your delicious dishes……so happy I found you. ☺️
Omg thank you! I’m so happy you found me too <3
Hey Justine! Do you have any ideas for an almond substitute? Thank you!
Hello! Any nut is a great sub, but if you’re allergic, I also love sunflower seeds or just omitting 🙂
Made this last night and loved it! The turmeric white bean mash is satisfyingly like a hummus but intriguingly different. I didn’t have Aleppo pepper, so I subbed for things I had on hand which were Spanish paprika and cayenne pepper. No clue if that’s a fair substitution but someone somewhere on the internet suggested that swap and it seemed to work. I could tell after trying the mash on its own that it would benefit from something to brighten it up, which is where adding lime to the cabbage comes in. The balance of the overall dish is so well considered and reveals itself as you go! An easy recipe to shop for and the instructions perfectly guide even the most easily frazzled home cook (me) through clear, well paced steps. No doubt I’ll make it again!
I cook a LOT and I was excited to try this recipe…. but my god it’s INCREDIBLE. My boyfriend and I kept looking at each other with wide eyes – it blew both of us out of the water. The sauce is 12/10. Adding to our favorite recipes and cooking on repeat! Thank you!
Omg thank you for such a nice review! I saw the notification on my phone and only read the beginning so I was scared you didn’t like it, but to hear you loved it makes me so happy <3 Thank you for taking the time to rate and review!
OMG Justine, this recipe is amazing! The bright flavors of the dip, the crunchiness of the rice and roasted cabbage, you can never go wrong with a base of cabbage (to which I added cumin seeds), absolutely delicious, Will be making this one over and over again. Thank you!
So I messed up on several fronts. I over cooked my cabbage. I didn’t have cilantro. I didn’t have Aleppo pepper, I didn’t have short grain white rice to cook and then fry. I had coriander, lots of garlic, cumin, turmeric, pepper flakes, long grain brown rice… normally with this many wrong things, I would stop. But I didn’t. I kept going. Was my rice crispy fried chunks? No it was not, but it was fried. Did I miss the Cilantro? No i don’t think so. Is it less spicy than it should be, yes. But.. the mash is so yummy and crispy cabbage is delicious! And the fried brown rice did just fine in my opinion. I will be making this again. I WILL try it with all the CORRECT ingredients. Thank you for creating recipes and content, and wonderful flavor profiles that I am not afraid to try. I have always said, I’m a baker not a cook. You might just make a cook out of me yet. Thank you so much!!
Reading this comment was like reading a suspense novel – but I am SO GLAD it worked out! Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment and review, as well as take me along on your cooking adventure
This was ridiculously good. I’ve been a long time follower but never made a recipe, and I’m SO happy this was the first one I tried. My girlfriend and I devoured it, and this will definitely be in our recipe rotation!!
I’m so thrilled you liked it! And equally thrilled this one was your first recipe of mine you tried, it’s so gooood!
Soooo good I used sunflower seeds in place of almonds bc it’s what I had and works great!
This was fantastic! I had to make a few changes due to missing ingredients (used a combo of cayenne and chili powder instead of Aleppo, and had to use lemon instead of lime), but it was SO YUMMY! I also had a bit of radicchio left, so added it to the cabbage. I see the mash becoming a regular dish, especially during summer when we try to have “no heat” meals.
hi Justine!! so excited to try and make this asap but can’t find Aleppo pepper anywhere 🙁 what is the best substitute in your opinion?
Hi! For this one I love sumac, but if you can’t find that either (it can be tricky to find as well) feel free to omit or use chili powder!
Super quick, delicious, and filling. This is the perfect weeknight meal. The way you organized the steps made everything come together so perfectly. Just as I was finishing up the mash, the cabbage was ready to come out of the oven and the rice was done. I only fried the rice a little because I was too eager to try everything together.
Like others, I used a cayenne and paprika (maybe a 1:4 ratio) in place of the aleppo pepper. I was fairly lazy with draining my almonds and beans so the mash ended up as more of a sauce. It still tasted great and was soaked up by the rice, but I’ll definitely do better next time.
Loved this!!!! So delicious and so so so healthy. Very grateful to have found you, on Tiktok! Even my picky preteens loved this dish!!
Thank you so very much.
M
Love this!! So easy and delicious!
Made this tonight with a few adjustments, didn’t have aleppo, subbed paprika and cayenne. And then I realized after I pulled the cabbage out of the oven that I didn’t have a lime like I thought I did. So I just skipped it and it was absolutely fantastic! Even my “meals are not satisfying without meat” loved it and asked if I would make it again!
Love this recipe! Do you know if the bean mash would freeze well?
It does! It keeps well for up to 4 months – just thaw in the fridge for 24 hours before use 🙂
Any substitute ideas for nutritional yeast?
Oooo that’s a tricky one – you can totally omit it, but it does add a really nice salty and cheesy factor. Another great sub is a few tablespoons of parmesan!
I used a tablespoon of Better than Bouillon paste and a splash of soy sauce. It tasted great! I think the texture of the bean paste was a little thinner than it would have been with the nutritional yeast, though. I was thinking you could also use miso paste or maybe even something with dried mushrooms?
I had to make a few significant changes based on what was in my pantry — still absolutely delicious! Adding this to the rotation and it’ll probably be my obsession for the next few weeks.
I didn’t have nutritional yeast, so I used about a tablespoon of Better Than Bouillon paste and a splash of soy sauce to replicate the savory flavor. ♀️ I used raw pumpkin seeds instead of almonds, and cayenne pepper instead of aleppo pepper. I roasted my cabbage in the air fryer because I only wanted a single serving.
All together, it was delicious and super well balanced. The subtle sweetness of the roasted cabbage, the brightness of the lime juice, the spicy savory bean paste… perfect!
This surprised me, so delicious, I will be adding it to my regularly made meals and will be trying more of your recipes asap!
This recipe is the cornerstone of my household. My wife and I carefully plan our weeks around how often we can make this salad without burn out. In fact better sheet pans were purchased in order to roast the cabbage even better for this recipe. It’s also the meal we always make dinner guests to show off. I usually end up using cashews for the mash because that’s what I have lying around and it comes out perfectly.
Omg I am so happy you like it! It’s one of my favorites, too, so I love that you both love cabbage as much as I do!
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