We felt that green cabbage would be a good choice for this, our first installment of the Virtual CSA Box.
Green cabbage is a cold weather crop and it keeps well, so it has been a common winter vegetable for hundreds of years. The tight, compact head we know as cabbage is actually called the babchka; the full head includes the wide, spreading mature leaves that are usually stripped off before it reaches your door in the CSA box.
So, if you find a babchka of green cabbage in your box this week, here's a few tips. First, don't wash it until you're ready to use it. Like most leafy vegetables, moisture will only speed deterioration. Pat off any moisture that is there, wrap in plastic and refrigerate. Cabbage will keep for quite a while in the fridge.
When you're ready to make good use of this smelly, sometimes intimidating vegetable, start with some recipes from our archives. If you are a cabbage neophyte, check out the Cabbage Braised in Wine. This method almost completely removes the pungent taste and smell that makes many people wrinkle their noses; it comes out soft and sweet instead.
You can also go back to the cabbage classics, like Corned Beef and Cabbage, Haluska (Cabbage Casserole), and, if you really have some time, Homemade Sauerkraut.
Or you can just use it a little at a time, shredded for some crunch in salads and Fish Tacos, or chopped fine in Steamed Pork Dumplings.
Did you get a green cabbage in your box of produce this week? If so, what are you going to do with it?
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don't forget stuffed cabbage!
I made a cabbage salad (slaw?)last night. I find I really like eating raw cabbage if I finely shred the cabbage and salt it in a colander while I get the rest of dinner ready. Then I squeeze out the liquid with my hands before tossing it in the salad bowl. It makes it less smelly, less watery, more digestible and it doesn't get any more wilted then it already is.
For the rest of the salad I finely sliced half a red onion, rinsed and drained it and let it soak with salt and sherry vinegar. I chopped about 1/4 c of dill, 2 red chillies and 2 cloves of garlic, threw them in with the onions and cabbage and drizzled the whole thing with good olive oil and ground a bunch of black pepper into it. It was bright and fresh and a nice break from all of the cooked greens and brassicae we've been eating.
regards,
trillium
I've never been a fan of cabbage but recently found a salad preparation that I love. I posted the recipe today--click on name to access.
I shredded some and used in a soup with grated carrot, sliced shiitakes, rice noodles, miso, chile/garlic sauce, ginger broth and topped with scallions and bean sprouts. yum! =)
I've been getting cabbage in my CSA box for the past month, so we've been having a lot of slaws (the thai-inspired vinegarry peanutty ones are my favorites).
for a quick and easy dinner - i've steamed cabbage together with cubes of tofu,and made some brown rice and a peanut sauce.
cabbage is a great meal stretcher-the ubiquitous slaw, but I like to slice it thin and steam/stir-fry it with all kinds of things, even steamed in wedges; I make colcannon sometimes on weekends when everyone is busy, especially with sports and such-it's filling and easy to heat up.
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