Equipment
Ingredients
Prawns and Marinade
- 500 g raw king prawns, peeled, deveined, tails removed
- 3 garlic, peeled
- 1 fresh ginger, peeled
Zesty Dressing
- 45 ml lime juice, freshly squeezed
- 30 ml fish sauce
- 15 ml tamari
- 20 g palm sugar, finely shaved
- 1 bird's eye chili, stem removed
- 15 ml sesame oil
Stir-fry and Assembly
- 30 ml neutral cooking oil
- 150 g red bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 100 g roasted unsalted cashews
- 50 g spring onions, thinly sliced
- 20 g fresh coriander, roughly chopped
- 1 green cabbage
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 427 kcal
- Protein
- 32 g
- Carbohydrates
- 26 g
- Fat
- 24 g
- Fiber
- 5 g
- Sugar
- 11 g
- Sodium
- 731 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 4 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 8 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 4 g
- Cholesterol
- 201 mg
- Potassium
- 898 mg
- Calcium
- 162 mg
- Iron
- 4.3 mg
- Magnesium
- 143 mg
- Phosphorus
- 447 mg
- Zinc
- 3.5 mg
- Vitamin A
- 88 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 94 mg
- Vitamin E
- 1.2 mg
- Vitamin K
- 103 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.4 mg
- Thiamin
- 0.14 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.14 mg
- Niacin
- 1.2 mg
- Folate
- 83 mcg
- Water
- 248 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Finely mince the garlic, ginger, and bird's eye chili. Keep them separate.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the lime juice, fish sauce, tamari, shaved palm sugar, sesame oil, and minced chili until the sugar is completely dissolved.
In a separate bowl, toss the raw prawns with the minced garlic and ginger. Let marinate at room temperature for 10 minutes. Wash your hands and all surfaces thoroughly after handling the raw prawns to prevent cross-contamination.
Carefully separate the green cabbage leaves to form cups. Plunge the leaves into a bowl of ice water to crisp them up, then pat them completely dry with paper towels and set aside.
Heat the neutral cooking oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat until it shimmers, approximately 200°C/400°F. Add the marinated prawns and sauté until they turn opaque pink and reach a safe internal temperature of 74°C/165°F, about 3 to 4 minutes.
Add the diced red bell pepper to the wok with the prawns. Stir constantly for 1 minute just to soften the pepper slightly while maintaining its crunch.
Pour the prepared dressing into the wok to deglaze the pan. Let the liquid bubble and reduce slightly for about 30 seconds. Turn off the heat immediately.
Fold the roasted cashews, sliced spring onions, and chopped coriander into the hot prawn mixture off the heat.
Spoon the warm prawn and cashew mixture generously into the crisp cabbage leaves and serve immediately.
Chef's Notes
- For the crispest cabbage cups, plunging the separated leaves into ice water for 5 minutes shocks the plant cells, resulting in a significantly better crunch.
- Palm sugar adds a distinct caramel depth that refined white sugar lacks. If your palm sugar block is too hard to shave with a knife, microwave it for 5 to 10 seconds to soften it slightly.
- To prevent the cashews from becoming soggy and losing their signature crunch, only fold them through the stir-fry completely off the heat right before serving.
Storage
Refrigerator: 2 days — Store filling and cabbage leaves in separate airtight containers to maintain crispness.
Reheating: Reheat the filling gently in a pan over medium heat just until warmed through, or serve cold.
Troubleshooting
Prawns are tough, rubbery, and tightly curled
Cause: Overcooking the prawns during the high-heat stir-fry phase
Fix: Cannot be fixed
Prevention: Remove the wok from the heat the exact moment the prawns turn pink and opaque. Prawns cook incredibly fast and will continue cooking slightly in the residual heat.
Dressing is too sour or out of balance
Cause: Limes varied in acidity or palm sugar did not dissolve fully
Fix: Add an extra pinch of shaved palm sugar or a splash of water to the wok and stir well to balance the acidity.
Prevention: Taste the dressing before adding it to the wok. Whisk vigorously to ensure sugar is integrated.
Cabbage leaves are soggy or tearing
Cause: Leaves were not dried properly after the ice bath or filling was sitting in them too long before serving
Fix: Serve the filling in a bowl and use the cabbage leaves on the side to scoop as you go.
Prevention: Pat leaves completely dry and only assemble the cups immediately before eating.
Cultural Context
This dish draws inspiration from traditional Thai Miang Kham, a bite-sized wrap often served in fresh leaves to offer a burst of complex flavors. While Miang Kham traditionally utilizes wild pepper leaves, crisp green cabbage provides an accessible, crunchy vessel for the sweet, sour, salty, and spicy flavor profile central to authentic Thai cuisine.
