Braised Red Cabbage with Apples and Caraway

There tends to be some repetition when you blog as much as we do since we're all about every day cooking and all so bear with me as I talk about the braised red cabbage we had last night.

We happen to love the stuff although it was one of the cooked veggies the Big Guy avoided before we tied the knot. He's come to realize there's hardly anything better for pure simple deliciousness than cooked cabbage, but even I admit it doesn't make the house smell particularly good the day after the night before.

This particular recipe is our favorite and includes cabbage, red onion and apples all braised low and slow for two whole hours in a mix of red wine vinegar, brown sugar, chicken stock and caraway seeds. You'd think it would be cooked to death now wouldn't you but it isn't. There's still some crunch left to the cabbage and it's absolutely silken in texture and full of the nuances of apples and caraway.

Served along with some lovely fresh pork bratwurst sausages from our local purveyor "Sprouts", it's a lovely incredibly easy and very delicious solution to a weeknight dinner. The best part about it, the cabbage can be prepared the night before and reheated because it only gets better. Try it next time you need a different kind of side dish. It's fabulous with any kind of pork, especially schnitzel and great with duck too.

Braised Red Cabbage with Apple and Caraway (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Sable and Rosenfeld, Elegant Entertaining)

1 large head red cabbage coarsely chopped into 1 inch pieces

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons butter

1 red onion sliced

2 apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

1/2 cup chicken stock

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 teaspoons caraway seeds

Black pepper to taste

In a large non-reactive bowl (stainless steel or glass) combine cabbage, red wine vinegar and salt. Allow to sit for 5 minutes. Meanwhile heat 2 tablespoons butter in a large heavy Dutch oven over medium heat. Add sliced onion, apples, chicken stock, brown sugar, caraway seeds and cabbage/red wine vinegar mixture. Cover pot and reduce heat to low. Braise for 2 hours, stirring every half hour until cabbage is tender. Taste for seasoning and add black pepper as needed. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

A year ago - Pasta with Pancetta and Tomatoes   Two years ago - Pork Tenderloin with Rhubarb Chutney

Comments

[Lea]

And it's beautiful on the plate! Some things are worth repeating - yes!

[June]

Definitely and nothing like a little sausage with your mustard. Ya' think I love the stuff? LOL

[pam]

Have you tried roasted cabbage? It is so good.

[June]

Pam - I've done it with bacon and you're right. It is delicious!

[Mags]

Dave would love me forever and without reserve if I made this for him. Def his favorite.

However, I'm tempted to try Pam's idea of roasting cabbage. I've roasted every other veggie, but never cabbage.

[June]

This is really wonderful Mags with a completely different flavor from roasted; however, they're both wonderful and if you do roast it, don't forget the bacon! Kind of tastes like roasted brussels sprouts only on steriods and maybe even sweeter.

[Lorraine]

I love cabbage done this way. The apples and caraway are a must. Nice color too.

[June]

Thanks Lorraine. We love it too - especially the next day because the flavors really intensify.