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Miso-roasted cabbage with toasted seeds
youryum.com/recipes/miso-roasted-cabbage-with-toasted-seeds · serves 4

Cabbage with a nutty, crackling top

Toast the seeds separately so they stay crisp, then scatter them over the miso cabbage after roasting instead of letting them burn on the tray.

  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian
  • Gluten free
  • Dairy free
Maren Ashby in her kitchen, in a dark apron, looking away from the camera
By Maren Ashby · Writes and tests everything here
Published 8 June 2026
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Miso roasted cabbage wedges with toasted pumpkin and sunflower seeds
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Prep
10 min
Cook
35 min
Total
45 min
Serves
4
Per serving
220kcal
Effort
Easy

Seeds give roasted cabbage the thing it otherwise lacks: a dry, crackling texture. They do not need the oven, though. By the time the cabbage is tender, small seeds on the tray are either burnt or buried in cabbage water. Toast them in a pan, tip them out, and keep them for the last minute.

Pumpkin and sunflower seeds make a good pair because one puffs and the other browns. Miso, lemon and a little honey or maple syrup round out the roast. It is a useful side when the main dish is soft, saucy or full of beans.

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Cabbage

Glaze

Seed topping

Equipment

  • Large roasting tray
  • Small frying pan
  • Pastry brush

Method

  1. Toast the seeds

    Put the pumpkin and sunflower seeds in a dry frying pan over medium heat. Toast for four to six minutes, shaking often, until the pumpkin seeds puff and the sunflower seeds have golden edges. Tip them onto a plate immediately and toss with the sesame oil.

  2. Roast the cabbage

    Heat the oven to 220°C fan with the roasting tray inside. Rub the cabbage wedges with olive oil and salt. Put them cut-side down on the hot tray and roast for 20 minutes, until the first faces are deeply browned.

    Hands tipping toasted pumpkin and sunflower seeds into a bowl beside roasted cabbage

  3. Add the miso

    Mix the miso, vinegar, maple syrup and water. Turn the cabbage and brush the browned faces. Roast for 10 to 12 minutes, until the glaze is shiny and the core is tender.

  4. Season the seeds

    Add lemon zest and parsley to the warm seeds. Taste one. It should be lightly salted by the miso on the cabbage, so do not add much salt to the topping unless the seeds are completely plain. The lemon oils will cling to the warm seeds for a minute, which is why the zest goes in before the topping cools. Keep the mixture loose in the bowl rather than pressing it into a paste; you want individual seeds to land across the cabbage and bring crunch to every forkful.

  5. Scatter at the last moment

    Put the cabbage on a platter and scatter the seeds over it just before serving. If they go on early, steam from the wedges softens them. The same topping is good over rice, soup or a fried egg.

Cabbage miso pumpkin seeds sunflower seeds lemon parsley and oil before cooking
The seeds are toasted in their own pan, away from cabbage steam.

Listen to the pan

Sunflower seeds go quiet when they are still cold, then begin to smell nutty before they look brown. Pumpkin seeds puff and click against the pan. That sound is useful: once several have opened, the batch is ready to leave the heat.

Do not wait for every seed to colour. The small ones burn while you wait for the large ones to catch up. A few pale seeds are better than a pan of bitter ones. Take the pan off the hob before you think you need to; the metal stays hot and the seeds keep toasting for another minute.

Crunch is a serving-time ingredient

A topping can be part of the cooking or part of the serving. Seeds belong to the second category here. They have already had their heat; their job now is to stay dry against the soft cabbage. Keep them on a plate until the platter is ready.

Nutrition

Per serving, for 4 servings. Estimated from ingredient weights — it moves with the brands and cuts you actually use.

NutrientPer serving
Calories 220 kcal
Protein 7 g
Carbohydrate 22 g
Fibre 8 g
Fat 13 g

Source: Estimated from ingredient weights, USDA FoodData Central

Questions

Can I toast the seeds in the oven?
Yes, use a small tray at 180°C for six to eight minutes and watch closely. A frying pan gives you more control because you can hear and smell the change.
Can I use only pumpkin seeds?
Yes. Use 70 g pumpkin seeds and remove them when most have puffed. The topping will be larger and more crunchy.
Why are my seeds chewy?
They either went onto the cabbage too early or were not toasted long enough. Keep them separate until serving and toast until fragrant, not merely warm.
Can I add nuts?
Yes, chopped almonds or hazelnuts work. Toast them with the seeds but remove the pan once the nuts are golden, before the smaller seeds darken.

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