Saturday, June 27, 2009

Buttered Red Cabbage

Astrid from Paulchen's Foodblog is hosting Weekend Herb Blogging and this week I've been unable to resist the lure of the tiny vegetable - my weakness takes the form of this baby red cabbage

red cabbage© by Haalo

This particular specimen was a little larger than a tennis ball in size and at this young age the outer leaves are a deep purple-black and inside a much more vibrant purple.

red cabbage© by Haalo

The colour is driven by a pigment called anthocyanin within the cabbage that reacts to the soil's pH - acidic soils give you these red colourings. If you don't like to eat red cabbage you could always use it to make your own pH indicator, something the home gardener might find handy.

I won't be conducting chemistry experiments with this one though, I'll be making a really quick and colourful side dish of buttered red cabbage with a dash of aged Balsamic to help maintain the colour and add a tinge of acidic sweetness to the dish.


Buttered Red Cabbage© by Haalo


Buttered Red Cabbage

1 Baby Red Cabbage
1 red onion, finely sliced
butter
salt and pepper
balsamic vinegar


Cook the onions:
Place a little olive oil and a small knob of butter into a pan over a low heat, when the butter has melted, toss in the finely sliced onions and allow them to slowly soften and just start to colour.

Prepare the Cabbage:
Remove the outer leaves and discard. Cut the cabbage in half, remove the core and then slice as finely as possible. Wash the sliced cabbage and drain very well.

sliced red cabbage© by Haalo

Add some more butter to the onions and toss in the cabbage - stirring constantly to ensure it's mixed well. This will only take a few minutes to cook, you just want the cabbage to wilt but not loose all its crunch. When it's almost ready, drizzle over with Aged Balsamic, taste and season with freshly ground sea salt and white pepper. Continue cooking until the cabbage has a glossy sheen. Remove from the heat and serve at once.

buttered red cabbage© by Haalo

This is a great accompaniment to all grilled meats, it goes especially well with beef, duck and venison.


8 comments

  1. I love red cabbage. Actually I love the red version of all vegetables. I have this plan someday to grow only red versions of everything--but my husband has vetoed it.

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  2. This sounds absolutely fantastic to me. I adore red cabbage, and simply braised is one of my favorite ways to have it. I bet this is delicious!

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  3. AnonymousJune 28, 2009

    I love the simplicity of this dish. I'll have to try it very soon.

    Paz

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  4. AnonymousJune 29, 2009

    I love the photos - particularly the first one. And yes, I too love red cabbage cooked this way.

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  5. Gorgeous. I love red cabbage, and I have some growing in my garden this year. I've never grown it before, so hopefully it will be a success. I think cabbage is great no matter how you eat it, this looks delicious.

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  6. Thanks MM - sounds like a fun thing to do!

    Thanks Ricki - it certainly hits the right notes

    Thanks Paz!

    Thanks Spice!

    Thanks Kalyn - cabbage is great as long as it isn't overcooked!

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  7. Yum, yum, yum!!!

    I LOVE cabbage, especially with pork chops.

    http://www.tomatokumato.com

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