Charred Pointed Cabbage in Harissa Tomato with Tahini and Sumac Onions

Name: Charred Pointed Cabbage in Harissa Tomato with Tahini and Sumac Onions
Prep time: 35 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 900 g Pointed cabbage; 30 ml Sunflower oil; 30 g Unsalted butter; 4.5 g Salt; 45 ml Extra virgin olive oil; 1 piece Onion, diced 5 mm; 5 clove Garlic; 30 g Tomato paste; 30 g Harissa; 3 g Cumin seed, ground; 3 g Smoked paprika; 2 g Coriander seed, ground; 0.5 g Cinnamon, ground; 2 g Chilli flakes; 400 g Crushed tomatoes; 160 ml Water; 5 g Honey; 1 g MSG; 80 g Tahini, stirred; 45 ml Lemon juice; 1 piece Red onion; 5 g Sumac; 10 g Flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked; 5 g Fresh mint, leaves picked; 8 g Sesame seeds, toasted

Seared Spitzkohl wedges braised in spiced tomato

Pointed cabbage is cut into wedges and seared hard on both cut faces, then basted in brown butter. The wedges braise for a short time in a tomato sauce with harissa and cumin. Lemon tahini, onions pickled in sumac, herbs and sesame go on at the end. The charred faces stay above the liquid so they keep their crust.

EquipmentCast-iron pan CuisineLevantine CourseMain TechniqueSearing DietVegetarian TechniqueBlooming TechniqueBraising TechniqueEmulsifying CuisineNorth African TechniquePickling TechniqueReduction CourseSide

For

2 servings

Why the first revision

First version. Written on 2026-09-29 from the idea of the viral charred cabbage in spiced tomato with tahini. Changes from that idea: more chilli from harissa, a brown butter baste, and sumac used raw on pickled onion. Not cooked yet.

Sumac onions

4 steps

1 A
Cut the red onion in half. Slice it 1 mm thick.
1 piece Red onion
2 A
Put the onion in a bowl with 3 g sumac, 15 ml lemon juice and 0.5 g salt.
4.5 g Salt 45 ml Lemon juice 1 piece Red onion 5 g Sumac
3 A
Squeeze the onion with your hands for 30 s. It softens and turns pink.
Work Pickling
4 A
Let the onion stand for 15 min or longer. Leave it until you serve.
Time 15 min

Tahini sauce

3 steps

5 B
Grate 1 garlic clove into 30 ml lemon juice. Add 0.5 g salt. Let it stand for 5 min.
4.5 g Salt 5 clove Garlic 45 ml Lemon juice
Time 5 min
6 B
Add the tahini and whisk. It becomes a stiff paste. This is correct.
80 g Tahini
Work Emulsifying
7 B
Whisk in 60 ml ice-cold water in small amounts. Stop when the sauce pours like double cream.
160 ml Water
Work Emulsifying

Cabbage

3 steps

8 C
Remove damaged outer leaves from the cabbage.
900 g Pointed cabbage
9 C
Cut the cabbage lengthwise into 4 wedges through the core. Keep the core on each wedge.
900 g Pointed cabbage
10 C
Dry the cut faces with paper towel. Do not salt them yet.

Sear

6 steps

11 D
Heat the sunflower oil in the cast-iron pan on medium-high heat until it shimmers.
30 ml Sunflower oil
Tool Cast-iron pan
12 D
Put the wedges in the pan on one cut face. Put a smaller pan on top as a weight.
Work Searing
13 D
Cook for 6 min. Do not move them. The face must be dark brown and black at the leaf edges.
Time 6 min
Work Searing
14 D
Turn the wedges onto the other cut face. Cook for 2 min.
Time 2 min
Work Searing
15 D
Add the butter. When it foams and smells of nuts, spoon it over the wedges for 2 min.
30 g Unsalted butter
Time 2 min
16 D
Sprinkle 1.5 g salt on the charred faces. Put the wedges on a plate, charred side up.
4.5 g Salt

Sauce

7 steps

17 E
Keep the pan and its brown residue. Reduce the heat to medium. Add 30 ml olive oil.
45 ml Extra virgin olive oil
18 E
Add the diced onion. Cook for 5 min until soft and gold. Scrape the pan as it cooks.
1 piece Onion
Time 5 min
19 E
Grate 4 garlic cloves into the pan. Cook for 1 min.
5 clove Garlic
Time 1 min
20 E
Add the tomato paste, harissa, cumin, smoked paprika, coriander, cinnamon and chilli flakes.
30 g Tomato paste 30 g Harissa 3 g Cumin seed 3 g Smoked paprika 2 g Coriander seed 0.5 g Cinnamon 2 g Chilli flakes
Work Blooming
21 E
Fry for 2 min. Stir all the time. Stop when the paste is brick-red and the oil turns red.
Time 2 min
Work Blooming
22 E
Add the crushed tomatoes, 100 ml water, honey, MSG and 2 g salt. Scrape the pan clean.
4.5 g Salt 400 g Crushed tomatoes 160 ml Water 5 g Honey 1 g MSG
23 E
Simmer for 3 min until slightly thick. The sauce must taste slightly too strong.
Time 3 min
Work Simmering

Braise

4 steps

24 F
Put the wedges in the sauce, charred side up. Keep the charred faces above the liquid.
25 F
Put on a lid. Braise on low heat for 12 to 15 min. Start to test at 10 min.
Time 12 min–15 min
Work Braising
26 F
Push a knife into the core. It must go in with a small resistance.
27 F
Remove the lid. Simmer for 3 min until a spoon leaves a clean line in the sauce.
Time 3 min
Work Reduction

Finish

5 steps

28 G
Serve from the pan, or put the sauce and wedges on a warm plate, charred side up.
29 G
Pour the tahini sauce over the wedges in a zigzag.
30 G
Drain the onions. Put them on top of the wedges.
31 G
Add the parsley, mint and sesame seeds.
10 g Flat-leaf parsley 5 g Fresh mint 8 g Sesame seeds
32 G
Sprinkle 2 g sumac over the dish. Pour on 15 ml olive oil.
45 ml Extra virgin olive oil 5 g Sumac

Notes

NOTE · RESEARCH Origin of the dish

The dish that went viral is by Nisha Vora, from her book Big Vegan Flavor. Her method sears cabbage wedges in a cast-iron pan, braises them in a spiced tomato sauce, then adds tahini sauce. This recipe keeps that structure. It adds harissa for heat, a brown butter baste, and sumac onions.

CAUTION · IDEA Chickpeas for a main with more protein

Add 1 drained 400 g tin of chickpeas to the sauce with the crushed tomatoes. This makes the dish a full main and adds protein. Not tried yet.

Literature

[1] Buttery Charred Cabbage In Spiced Tomatoes With Tahini Consulted 29 SEP 2026 · plantbasednews.org/veganrecipes/dinner/buttery-charred-cabbage/

The science

What is actually happening in the dish, and why the techniques work.

A dry, unsalted face browns. A wet face steams.

Salt on a cut cabbage face pulls water out in a few minutes. That water holds the surface near 100 °C, so the face steams and does not brown. Browning needs the surface above about 140 °C.

Pointed cabbage holds more free sugar than white cabbage, so a dry face browns fast and deep. The weight presses the loose leaves flat against the pan. This gives an even crust instead of brown patches.

Salt the faces after the sear.

cut face dry · no salt before the sear · surface above 140 °C · weight on top

A short braise stops the sulfur smell

Cut cabbage releases isothiocyanates, which give the sharp mustard taste. Heat stops the enzyme that makes them. Long wet cooking then breaks sulfur compounds down to dimethyl trisulfide and hydrogen sulfide. These give the smell of overcooked cabbage.

Pointed cabbage has thin cell walls and becomes tender fast. Stop when the knife meets a small resistance in the core. Keep the charred faces above the liquid so the crust stays dry.

lid on · low heat · 12 min → 15 min · charred face above the liquid

Sumac goes on cold

Sumac is sour from malic acid. Its fruity smell comes from volatile compounds that heat drives off. So it goes on the onions and on the finished dish, and never into the pan.

Sumac and red onion both hold anthocyanins. These pigments are brightest at low pH. The lemon juice drops the pH, so the onion turns bright pink. Squeezing breaks the onion cells so the acid gets in and softens the raw sulfur taste.

no heat · 15 min or longer · with lemon juice