WITH ST. PATRICK’S DAY UPON US, MANY ARE THINKING CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE. Which is fine, except it puts cabbage in an undeserved supporting role—the romantic lead’s goofy buddy. That’s just wrong. In a recent issue of Taste, Rachel Wharton rightly proclaimed “Cabbage is Always King.” She dives deep into cabbage’s history (we’ll share the link further down). But for now, we’d like to share seven recipes that show off the healthy brassica’s flavor and versatility.
Braised Cabbage
Red cabbage combines with butter, red wine, onion, apple, pear, vinegar, cloves and sugar to create a delicious, healthy, ruby red side dish. As a bonus, you can make it a day ahead and it will be even better. Find the recipe here.
Unstuffed Cabbage
The classic Polish dish Stuffed Cabbage is just as delicious and comforting in this deconstructed version, and so much easier to make, with wedges of braised cabbage topped with a sauce of tomatoes, bell peppers, celery, red wine and sausage. Find the recipe here.
Pork & Cabbage Potstickers
Cabbage gets around, turning up in cuisines pretty much around the world. Pork and cabbage are a classic filling for these potstickers, Chinese dumplings. Yes, they are fun to make, and yes, they are fun to eat.
Cabbage and Red Lentil Soup
This soup comes together weeknight-quick with an unlikely mix of ingredients—cabbage, red lentils, leeks, a jalapeño pepper, white miso paste, turmeric and fresh ginger. And despite the Indian elements, it doesn’t taste like Indian cuisine. It is just a simple, satisfying soup.
Bigos—Polish Hunter’s stew
Sometimes called the Polish national dish, bigos contains not only fresh cabbage, but its fermented version, sauerkraut. Our recipe also includes sausage, roast pork, chicken, mushrooms, apples and spices to create a true hunter’s stew.
Savoy Cabbage Potato Soup
Cabbage and potatoes have a long, impressively multicultural history together. They’ve been combined deliciously from Poland to Hungary, Ireland, China and Ethiopia, all the way to tiny Suriname. The Savoy cabbage in this recipe is milder, sweeter and softer than regular cabbage. And it is at the heart of this comforting, creamy soup.
Colcannon
And because St. Patrick’s Day is indeed upon us, we leave you with colcannon, a traditional Irish favorite. This humble-sounding mash of potatoes, cabbage, leeks and plenty of butter is luxuriously creamy. You’ll find the recipe here.
Finally, here’s that Taste article that started us thinking about this cabbage roundup, Cabbage is Always King. Enjoy.
You have the best recipes, Terry!!
Not a week went by when I was growing up that my mother didn’t make some sort of cabbage dish ~ sweet & sour with bacon, creamed cabbage, cole slaw, cabbage soup or the best cabbage rolls you would have ever tasted.
Thanks for the great round up of recipes!
Thanks, Dani! Marion’s family cooked much more cabbage when she was growing up than mine did, so most of these recipes are hers. But it’s a regular feature in our kitchen.