Healthy Cabbage Soup

This soup carries the same flavours of the Levantine beloved Malfouf mahshi ( stuffed cabbage)

Like any other stuffed vegetables, such as warak inab or yalanji the preparation takes time, and the dish is cooked on low heat until soft and melts in the mouth.

I recall my mother making this dish on the weekends. As a working mom, she had no time for time-consuming preparations, and she was lucky as her belated sister used to invite us for lunch so often where she will prepare for us many dishes we love that consumes so much time in preparation. She was my moms Angel, she made frozen kibbeh for her, stuffed vine leaves and the favourite Levantine aubergine makdous which I make using green beans instead as it is much faster to prepare.

This soup is practically a deconstructed stuffed cabbage dish, it retains the same flavour with little time spent in the preparation. 

This recipe is suitable for sufferers of type 2 diabetes. They should consume a lot of low-carb vegetables as it a way to fill up the stomach without spiking the blood sugar levels. Cabbage is a must weekly, an inexpensive way to add vitamins K and C, as well as antioxidants, manganese and fibre.

Fibre, which is found in legumes, whole grains such as brown rice, fruits and vegetables, helps maintain a healthy bowel, controls blood sugar, lowers cholesterol levels and supports a healthy and ideal weight.

Servings: 4

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Start to finish: 30 minutes.

Ingredients:

700 grams of cabbage

250 grams of lamb leg

3 tablespoons tomato paste

1 1/2 litres water or any stock

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 tablespoon dried mint flakes

A handful chopped fresh mint

1 tablespoon Himalayan salt

½​teaspoon black pepper

3 cups cooked brown rice

2 crushed big cloves of garlic

½ a lemon

Method: 

• Roughly cut the cabbage as seen in the video.

• Cut the lamb into 1 cm cubes and heat a pot with the canola oil and sear the cubed lamb.

• Add the tomato paste and stir for a minute.

• Add the water and salt, cover and bring to the boil.

• Add the cabbage, cover and cook until the lamb is soft—20 to 30 minutes. 

• When the lamb is cooked, add the dried mint, fresh mint and the crushed garlic.

• Add the cooked brown rice and black pepper then adjust the salt.

• Squeeze half a lemon into the soup and bring it back to the boil for 1 minute and serve.

• Adjust the tartness to your liking.

Notes:

• The brown rice can be cooked in the soup, but the starch will make the soup cloudy.

• If you add the salted stock, then reduce the amount of salt added. 

• You make the soup vegetarian by removing the lamb and adding vegetable stock.

• If you want a super quick soup, you can use lean minced lamb or beef.

Per Serving: 395 Calories; 17g Fat (38.0% calories from fat); 15g Protein; 47g Carbohydrate; 7g Dietary Fiber; 34mg Cholesterol; 1769mg Sodium.