All hail cabbage, the King of the Crisper. I salute you, and routinely toss your head into my shopping cart. You're economical, reliable, long-lasting, and a gift to your subjects, us loyal home cooks.
There is no vegetable that can languish in your crisper as long as cabbage and still survive to produce a totally pleasing vegetable dish (or five). The lightly overlapping layers of hearty, smooth leaves are like nature’s version of Saran Wrap, and keep the underlying leaves fresh longer than you could reasonably expect. Just peel off and discard any leaves that go a little limp and mangy, until you reach the sturdy, firm usable parts.
Your standard issue green cabbage, will yield at least 8 cups of cooked vegetables. It tastes savory and earthy, yet when caramelized has a sweet undertone. So at under $1.00 per pound, you’d be hard pressed to find better value in a vegetable. What more can you ask from your king?
For a week or so worth of cabbage-y meals, make a batch of Braised Cabbage today (you should double the recipe if you’re feeding a crowd), and serve it as a side dish with roast chicken or pork chops for dinner tonight.
Then, for the rest of the week, use it up as follows:
Tossed with penne pasta and refry. Cook a pound or so of penne (or other short pasta). Fry the pasta with a cup or two of leftover braised cabbage in olive oil. Shower the top of each serving with grated Parmesan or Romano Cheese, and fresh ground black pepper.
Put-an-egg-on-it. Heat the cabbage leftovers in the microwave, while you fry an egg. Douse with hot sauce.
Pierogi-potstickers. Just when the family might rebel against cabbage week, fill wonton wrappers with the leftover potato-cabbage mixture. Cook them like pot stickers with water and butter in a pan, simmering until the water is evaporated and they’re golden and crispy on the bottom.
Soup. Substitute braised cabbage for the smothered cabbage called for in this Marcella Hazan recipe. Top with plenty of grated Parmesan.
Colcannon. Fold the remaining cabbage into buttery mashed potatoes to make Colcannon. Top with fried onions.
This article was written by Lucinda Scala Quinn from Food52 and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.
