Sri Lankan Cabbage Leaves Recipe (Gova Kola Mallung)
Gova Kola Mallum is a Sri Lanka vegan recipe using shredded outer cabbage leaves and fresh coconut. Any Sri Lankan greens dish that is cooked together with fresh shredded coconut is called as a mallung / mallum / mellum in Sri Lanka. Mallung is a very common part of any sri lankan meal. What are other sri lankan mallum recipes? Other common Sri Lankan mallung include Gotu Kola mallum, Kale mallum and Mukunuwenna mallum.
Shredded coconut is obtained by splitting open a coconut and using a coconut grater to shred the coconut. Back in Sri Lankan, grating coconut was a household task assigned to my dad, sister or me. It was the easiest way to help our mother with cooking. Making Pol Sambol always brings back fond memories of eating simple meals with my family. While living in the US, it is too time consuming to find good coconut, split and grate them. I was able to find frozen shredded coconut in the Indian Grocery stores which taste pretty good.
Cabbage mallum is a very healthy and easy to cook, and can be a delicious side dish to any meal. If you try this cabbage mallung recipe, please leave a comment below. I would love to get your feedback. As always, love and good vibes to you all. Happy cooking!
Reasons to Try to this Cabbage Mallum Recipe
1) Quick – only takes 10 mins to make!
2) Easiest way to use up those outer cabbage leaves!
3) Cabbage plants are packed with Vitamin C, reduces inflammation and is heart healthy!
What Ingredients do you need for this Cabbage Mallum Recipe?
To cook this sri lankan cabbage mallum recipe, you need the following ingredients (including spices) :
- Outer cabbage leaves
- Shredded coconut (or freshly grated coconut)
- Small pearl onions (or red big onion)
- Green Chillies (optional)
- Turmeric powder
- Maldive fish flakes (optional)
- Lemon Juice / Lime Juice
- Salt
Tips and Tricks to Cook the best Sri Lankan Cabbage Mallum
- Using fresh coconut will taste the best, but frozen coconut also works in this recipe. In the US, shredded coconut can be found in the frozen section of any asian grocery store. Make sure you buy the ‘shredded’ and not ‘chunks’ of frozen coconut
- Substitute the red pearl onions with about half or quarter of a regular onion (red). White onions do not add flavor to any sambola dish, so they are not recommended to use in this recipe
- Maldive fish flakes (also called Umalakada) is a traditional sri lankan condiment added to any mallung, which gives it an umami taste. Please omit if you are vegetarian/vegan. Mallum still tastes great without maldive fish flakes.
- To cook a sri lankan kale mallung, chop some kale leaves and follow the same steps in this recipe. Personally, I think kale mallung tastes much better than gova kola mallum.
Dishes to serve with this Sri Lankan Mallum Recipe
In Sri Lankan cuisine, cabbage mallum is a typical side dish for any curry. It is an easy way to incorporate healthy greens into any meal. Gova Kola mallum can be served with any sri lankan rice and curry main meals such as:
- Mild dhal curry and spicy fish curry
- Spicy dhal curry and beetroot curry (vegetarian meal)
- Sri lankan shrimp curry and beetroot curry
Gova Kola Mallum ( Cabbage leaves with shredded coconut)
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cabbage leaves, shredded
- 2 tbsp Shredded coconut
- 2 Pearl Onions
Seasoning
- 1 tsp Lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric
Instructions
- Finely shred the cabbage leaves, and chop the pearl onions
- Mix the cabbage leaves, pearl onions, coconut and all seasonings together
- Heat a pan (no oil), then add the mixture to pan and stir for 1-2 mins
- Take out from pan ( or mixture will keep on cooking)
- Serve with white rice and curries
Steps to make Cabbage Mallum
Cabbage leaves that I grew using cabbage scraps. Cut two inches of the cabbage core, and keep in water for 1-2 days. Then stick the cabbage core in soil and water religiously. Free, organic outer cabbage leaves! Cabbage plants can also be grown from seed in your winter garden. These plants love the cold!
Freshly cut and washed outer cabbage leaves from the garden
Ingredients needed to make cabbage leaf mallum – outer cabbage leaves, pearl onions and shredded coconut. Regular red onions can also be used in place of the pearl onions. Shredded coconut can be either freshly grated coconut or buy the frozen shredded coconut from the grocery store, and thaw it well before use.
Chop the outer cabbage leaves and onions. Here I have about one whole cup of chopped leaves. If you have more leaves, add more coconut and onions to your mallum.
Mix all the ingredients well and add the seasonings.
Heat a non-stick pan and add the mixture into the pan. There is no need for oil, but you can 1/2tsp oil if you prefer. Heat for 1-2 mins and take mixture out of pan.
Note the color of cabbage has changed slightly after being heated. Serve this dish with rice and any curry. This yummy and easy recipe can be made in less than 10 minutes!
